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AMERICAN  POLITICS 
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PROFESSOR  WILLIAM  MERRILL 

AND 
MRS.  IMOGENE  MERRILL 


HANDBOOKS  for  Students  and  General  Readers 
JN SCIENCE,  LITERATURE,  ART,  AND  HISTORY. 

Messrs.  HENRY  HOLT  &  Co.  have  begun  the  publication  of  a  Series  of 
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professing  to  present  quite  detailed  views.  Generally,  they  will  be  found 
available  by  upper  classes  in  schools  which  can  not  give  much  time  to  the 
subjects,  and  by  mature  p.rsons  of  little  leisure  who  wish  to  enlarge  or  revise 
their  knowledge. 

'I  he  subjects  and  authors,  so  far  as  selected,  are  as  follows  : 

/  'O  L  UirES   PURL  ISHED. 
Zoology  of  the  Invertebrate  Animals.     By  ALEX.  MArALisTER, 

M.I.).,  Professor  of  Zoology  and  Comparative  Anatomy  in  the  University! 

of  Dublin.       Specially   revised  for  America  by   A.    S.    PACKARD,   JR., 

M.D.,  Professor  of  Zoology  and  Geology  in  Brown  University,     60  cts. 
Zoology  of  the  Vertebrate  Animals.      By  the  above  authors. 

i6mo.     60  cts. 

Zoology.     The  preceding  two  volumes  in  one.     i6mo.     $1.00. 

The  Studio  Arts.     By  ELIZABETH  WINTHROP  JOHNSON.     i6mo.     6oc. 

Astronomy.     By  R    S.  BALL,   T.L.D.,  F.R.S.,    Astronomer  Royal   for 

Ireland.     Specially  Revised  for  America  by  SIMON  NKWCOMB,  Superin- 
t  American  Nautical  Almanac;  formerly  Professor  at  the  U.  S. 

Naval  Observatory.     161110.     6oc. 
Practical    Physics— Molecular    Physics    and    Sound.     By 

FKKDKRICK    GUTHKMK,  Pn.D.  F.R.SS.  L.  &  E.,  Professor  of  Physics 

in  the   Royal   School  of  Mines,  London.      i6mo.     6oc.      (See  Practical 

JVtysics  below.) 
History     of    American    Politics.        By  ALEXANDER  JOHNSTON, 

A.M.      161110.     75c. 
History    of   the    English    Language.      By  T.    R.   LOUNSBUKY, 

Professor  of  English  in  Yale  College,     i6mo,     $1.00. 

FORTHCOMING     VOL  UMRS. 
Architecture.     By  RUSSELL    STURGIS,  A.M.,  Architect,   Professor  of 

Architecture  and  the  Arts  of  Design,  in  the  College  of  the  City  of  N.  Y. 
Botany.     Morphology   and    Physiology.    By  W.  R.  McNAB, 

M.D..    F.L.S.,     Professor    of  Botany,    Royal    College   of   Science   for 

Ireland,     Dublin.       Revised    by   C.    E.    BESSEY,    M.S.,    Professor  of 

Botany  in  the  Iowa  Agricultural  College. 
Botany.     Classification  of  Plants.     ByW.  R.  McNAB,     Revised 

by  C.  E.  BI-SSKV. 

English  Literature.     By  — 
French  Literature.     By  FERDINAND  BOCHER,  Professor  in  Harvard 

University. 

German  Literature.     By  — 
Jurisprudence.      By   JOHNSON    T.    PLATT,    Professor    in    the    Law 

Department  of  Yale  College. 
Mechanics.     By  R.  S.  BALL,  LL.D.,  F.R.S. 
Practical  Physics— Electricity  and  Magnetism.     By  Prof. 

F.  GUTHRIE,  Ph.D. 

Practical  Physics— Heat  and  Light.     By  Piof.  F.  GUTHRIE. 
Physical  Geography.     By  CLAKK.NCE  KING,   Director  of  the  U.  S. 

Government  Surveys. 
Political  Economy.     By  Professor  FRANCIS  A.  WALKER,  Ph.D 


HANDBOOKS  for  Slu-knl.t  and  G\nerc>\  Readers. 


HISTORY    OF 


AMERICAN    POLITICS 


BY 


ALEXANDER  JOHNSTON,  A.M. 


NEW  YORK 
HENRY  HOLT  AND  COMPANY 

1880 


GIFT 


COPYRIGHT,  1879, 
BY  HENRY  Hoi  r  &  Co. 


EXPLANATORY. 


THIS  Series  is  intended  to  meet  the  requirement  of 
brief  text-books  both  for  schools  and  for  adult  readers 
who  wish  to  review  or  expand  their  knowledge. 

The  grade  of  the  books  is  intermediate  between  the 
so-called  "primers"  and  the  larger  works  professing 
to  present  quite  detailed  views  of  the  respective  sub- 
jects. 

Such  a  notion  as  a  person  beyond  childhood  re. 
quires  of  some  subjects,  it  is  difficult  and  perhaps 
impossible  to  convey  in  one  such  volume.  Therefore, 
occasionally  a  volume  is  given  to  each  of  the  main 
departments  into  which  a  subject  naturally  falls — for 
instance,  a  volume  to  the  Zoology  of  the  vertebrates, 
and  one  to  that  of  the  invertebrates.  While  this  ar- 
rangement supplies  a  compendious  treatment  for  those 
who  wish,  it  will  also  sornetimes  enable  the  reader 
interested  in  only  a  portion  of  the  field  covered  by  a 
science,  to  study  the  part  he  is  interested  in,  without 
getting  a  book  covering  the  whole. 

Care  is  taken  tq  bring  out  whatever  educational 
value  may  be  extracted  from  each  subject  without  iin- 


M684057 


vi  Explanatory. 

peding  the  exposition  of  it.  In  the  books  on  the 
sciences,  not  only  are  acquired  results  stated,  but  as 
full  explanation  as  possible  is  given  of  the  methods  of 
inquiry  and  reasoning  by  which  these  results  have 
been  obtained.  Consequently,  although  the  treatment 
of  each  subject  is  strictly  elementary,  the  fundamental 
facts  are  stated  and  discussed  with  the  fulness  needed 
to  place  their  scientific  significance  in  a  clear  light, 
and  to  show  the  relation  in  which  they  stand  to  the 
general  conclusions  of  science. 

Care  is  also  taken  that  each  book  admitted  to  the 
series  shall  either  be  the  work  of  a  recognized  author- 
ity, or  bear  the  unqualified  approval  of  such.  As  far 
as  practicable,  authors  are  selected  who  combine 
knowledge  of  their  subjects  with  experience  in  teach- 
ing them. 


PREFACE. 

The  following  list  comprises  the  works  which  have 
been  principally  consulted  and  referred  to  in  the  prep- 
aration of  this  book : 

The  Stale,  by  Dr.  Theodore  Woolsey ;  Encyclopedia 
Britannica;  New  American  Cyclopcedia;  Civil  Liberty, 
by  Dr.  Francis  Lieber ;  The  Writings  of  Edmund 
Burke;  Sketches  of  English  Statesmen,  by  Lord 
Brougham.  The  Letters  of  Alexander  Hamilton, 
Thomas  Jefferson,  John  Adams,  John  C.  Calhoun, 
Henry  Clay,  and  Daniel  Webster;  Democracy  in  Amer- 
ica, by  M.  de  Tocqueville. 

History  of  the  United  States,  by  Hildreth;  History 
of  the  Civil  War  in  America,  by  Draper ;  Debates  in 
Congress;  Addresses  and  Messages  of  the  Presidents, 
1 7 89- 1 846 ;  The  American  Statesman,  by  Young; 
Biographical  Annals  of  the  Civil  Government  of  the 
United  States,  by  Lanman;  Rise  of  the  Republic,  by 
Frothingham ;  The  American  Conflict,  by  Greeley. 

The  Federalist;  Jameson's  Constitutional  Convention  ; 
Curtis' s  History  of  the  Constitution;  Story  on  the  Con- 

iii 


iv  Preface. 

stitidion  ;  Kent's  Commentaries;  Andrews' s  Handbook 
of  the  Constitution;  Marshall's  Life  of  George  Wash- 
ington;  William  Jay's  Life  of  John  Jay;  J.  C. 
Hamilton's  Life  of  Alexander  Hamilton  ;  Tucker's  Life 
of  Thomas  Jefferson;  Sparks1  s  Life  and  Letters  of 
Goircerncnr  Morris ;  Austin's  Life  of  Elbridge  Gerry ; 
J\i:'/s's  Life  of  Aaron  Burr ;  Dwight's  History  of  the 
Hartford  Convention ;  Henry  Adams's  Documents  Re- 
lating to  New  England  Federalism;  Benton's  Thirty 
Years  in  the  United  States  Senate;  Seward's  Life  of 
John  Qitincy  Adams ;  l{on  Hoist's  Constitutional  His- 
tory of  the  United  States  (Vol.  I,  trans.) ;  Works  of 
Daniel  Webster;  Colton's  Life  of  Henry  Clay ;  Cairnes's 
The  Slave  Power;  Victor's  History  of  the  Rebellion; 
Guernsey's  History  of  the  Rebellion. 

The  Whig  Almanac  (1838-1855);  The  Tribune  Al- 
manac (1856-1877);  Greelcy  and  McElrath  's  Political 
Text-Book  of  1860;  Congressional  Reports  (particularly 
on  Kansas,  Harper's  Ferry,  The  Covode  Investigation, 
The  Conduct  of  the  War,  The  Impeachment  of  Presi- 
dent Johnson).  The  Appendix  D  is  to  be  credited  to 
Spofford's  American  Almanac  for  1878. 

It  might  perhaps  have  been  better  to  use  the  term 
"  broad  constructionist "  instead  of  "  loose  construction- 
ist."  But  the  latter  had  been  used  by  all  the  earlier 
political  writers,  and  it  is  hoped  that  no  one  will  see 
anything  invidious  in  a  mere  technical  phrase.  The 
reader's  considerate  judgment  is  requested  upon  all  de- 
ficiencies and  omissions,  beyond  those  which  have  been 
compelled  by  the  necessity  for  condensation. 


Preface.  v 

The  design  of  the  book  is  not  to  present  the  politics 
of  the  States,  or  to  criticise  party  management,  but  to 
make  our  national  political  history  easily  available  to 
young  men.  It  is  of  interest  to  the  whole  republic  that 
young  citizens  should  be  able  to  learn  that  true  national 
party  differences  have  a  history  and  a  recognized  basis 
of  existence,  and  should  be  prevented  from  following 
factitious  party  differences,  contrived  for  personal  ob- 
jects by  selfish*  men.  If,  for  this  purpose,  this  book 
shall  be  considered  worthy  to  serve  as  an  introduction 
to  the  larger  works  already  published,  its  object  will  be 
accomplished. 

NEW  BRUNSWICK,  N.  J.,  March,  1879. 


CONTENTS. 

PREFACE  AND  AUTHORITIES,        .  .  .  iii 

INTRODUCTION,     ......        I 

CHAPTER  I. 

Origin  of  Political  Parties  in  the  United  States.  Formation 
of  the  Constitution  of  1787,  under  the  guidance  of  the 
Federal  Party,  .....  3 

CHAPTER  II. 

FIRST  ADMINISTRATION,    1789-1793.      Settlement  of  the 

government,  and  rise  of  the  Republican  Party,          .       1 8 

CHAPTER  III. 

SECOND  ADMINISTRATION,  1793-1797.  The  political  con- 
tests of  Europe  transferred  to  America.  Success  of 
the  Federalists  in  the  first  national  party  contest,  .  28 

CHAPTER  IV. 

THIRD  ADMINISTRATION,  1797-1801.  Continued  success 
of  the  Federalists.  Alien  and  Sedition  Laws.  Defeat 
of  the  Federalists.  The  disputed  election  of  1800,  41 

CHAPTER  V. 
FOURTH  ADMINISTRATION     1801-1805.      The  Republican 

Party  in  power.     Purchase  of  Louisiana,     .  .       52 

vii 


viii  Contents. 

CHAPTER  VI. 

FIFTH  ADMINISTRATION,  1805-1809.  Continued  decline  of 
the  Federal  Party.  The  Napoleonic  Wars.  The 
Embargo,  .  .  .  .  .  .60 

CHAPTER  VII. 
SIXTH  ADMINISTRATION,  1809-1813.     War  with  England. 

Opposition  to  it  by  the  Federalists,  .  .69 

CHAPTER  VIII. 
SEVENTH    ADMINISTRATION,    1813-1817.      Discontent    in 

New  England.     The  Hartford  Convention.     Peace,        76 

CHAPTER  IX. 

EIGHTH  ADMINISTRATION,  1817-1821.  Disappearance  of 
the  Federal  Party.  Appearance  of  loose  construction- 
i.-^t  Republicans.  Purchase  of  Florida.  The  Slavery 
Question,  and  the  Missouri  Compromise  of  1820,  .  83 

CHAPTER  X. 

NINTH  ADMINISTRATION,  1821-1825.  The  Era  of  Good 
Feeling.  Real  existence  of  Parties.  The  disputed 
election  of  1824,  .  92 

CHAPTER  XI. 

TENTH  ADMINISTRATION,  1825-1829.  Formation  of  the 
National  Republican  and  Democratic  Parties.  Suc- 
cess of  the  Democrats,  .  .  .  .96 

CHAPTER  XII. 

ELEVENTH  ADMINISTRATION,  1829-1833.  The  Opposition. 
Rotation  in  office.  Nullification.  The  National 
Bank,  .  ...  102 

CHAPTER  XIII. 

TWELFTH  ADMINISTRATION,  1833-1837.  Removal  of  the 
Deposits.  Success  of  the  President.  Slavery  and 
the  Anti-Slavery  Society,  .  .  .  .  115 


Contents.  ix 

CHAPTER  XIV. 

THIRTEENTH  ADMINISTRATION,  1837-1841.  Panic  of  1837. 
Defeat  of  the  Democrats.  Appearance  of  an  Aboli- 
tion Party,  .  .  .  .  .  .  125 

CHAPTER  XV. 

FOURTEENTH  ADMINISTRATION,  1841-1845.  The  Whig 
Party  in  power.  Its  disagreement  with  President 
Tyler.  Success  of  the  Democrats,  and  Annexation 
of  Texas,  .  .  .  .  .  .132 

CHAPTER  XVI. 

FIFTEENTH  ADMINISTRATION,  1845-1849.  The  Democratic 
Party  in  power.  War  with  Mexico.  The  Slavery 
Question  revived  as  to  territory  acquired  from  Mexico. 
The  Wilmot  Proviso.  The  Formation  of  the  Free 
Soil  Party.  The  Whig  Party  evades  the  Slavery 
Question,  .  .  .  .  .  .141 

CHAPTER  XVII. 

SIXTEENTH  ADMINISTRATION,  1849-1853.  The  Whig 
Party  in  power.  Adoption  of  Squatter  Sovereignty 
by  the  Democrats.  California.  The  Compromise  of 
1850.  Its  acceptance  by  the  Whig  Convention,  .  151 

CHAPTER  XVIII. 

SEVENTEENTH  ADMINISTRATION,  1853-1857.  The  Demo- 
cratic Party  in  power.  The  Kansas-Nebraska  Bill, 
and  the  Repeal  of  the  Compromise  of  1820.  Divi- 
sion of  the  Whig  Party.  Rise  of  the  Republican  and 
American  Parties.  Kansas,  .  .  .158 

CHAPTER  XIX. 

EIGHTEENTH  ADMINISTRATION,  1857-1861.  The  Dred 
Scott  Decision,  and  its  Consequences.  Southern 
Democrats  reject  Squatter  Sovereignty.  Division  of 
the  Democratic  Party.  Success  of  the  Republicans. 
Secession,  Conciliation,  and  attempted  Compromise,  j  70 


x  Contents. 

CHAPTER  XX. 

NINETEENTH  ADMINISTRATION,  1861-1865.  The  Repub- 
lican Party  in  power.  Civil  War.  Loose  Construc- 
tionist  Measures.  The  Democratic  Party  opposes  the 

war  and  is  defeated.     Abolition  of  Slavery,        .     186 

CHAPTER  XXI. 

TWENTIETH  ADMINISTRATION,  1865-1869.  Return  of  the 
seceding  States  to  the  Union.  Reconstruction.  Dis- 
agreement between  Congress  and  the  President.  The 
Democratic  Party  opposes  Reconstruction  by  Con- 
gress and  is  defeated,  .  .  196 

CHAPTER  XXII. 

TWENTY-FIRST  AND  TWENTY-SECOND  ADMINISTRATIONS, 
1869-1877.  Reconstruction  by  Congress  accomplish- 
ed. Union  of  the  Democrats  and  Liberal  Republic- 
ans. Success  of  the  Republican  Party.  The  dis- 
puted election  of  1876,  ....  209 

APPENDIX  A.     Articles  of  Confederation,  .  .     216 

APPENDIX  B.     The  Constitution,  ....     230 
APPENDIX  C.     Admission  of  the  States,    .  .  .     257 

APPENDIX  D.     Summary  of  Popular  and  Electoral  Votes  in 

Presidential  Elections,  1789-1876,   .  .  .     258 

APPENDIX  E.     Population  of  the  Sections,  1790-1860,       .     265 
APPENDIX  F.     Congressional   Representation   of  the   Sec- 
tions, 1790-1860,     .....     266 
APPENDIX  G.     The  Sections  in  1878,         .  .  .     267 

INDEX,      .......    269 


INTRODUCTION. 

1.  THE  government  of  the  United  State?,  in  its  origi- 
nal form  (in  1777),  was  an  extreme  Democracy,  whose 
controlling  principle  was  the  complete   independence 
of    separate   communities.     Those   who    opposed    its 
change  to  a  Representative  Republic  (in  1787)  were 
generally  distinguished  afterwards  by  a  desire  that  the 
Constitution  then  adopted  should  be  construed  or  in- 
terpreted strictly  according  to  its  terms,  and  that  in- 
genious interpretations  of  its  provisions  should  not  give 
the  Federal  Government  any  further  stretch  of  power. 
The  party  which  was  thus  founded,  and  which  has  re- 
tained the  name  of  Democratic-Republican  even  to  our 
own  day,  has  therefore  usually  been  called  the  Strid: 
Construcftionist  party. 

2.  On  the  other  hand  the  successive  parties  which 
have  opposed  the  Strict  Constructionist  view,  and  have 
endeavored  to  carry  the  government  still  further  from  its 
originally  extreme  democratic  form,  have  generally  been 
distinguished  by  a  desire  that  the  Constitution  should 
be  interpreted  loosely  and  broadly,  so  as  to  give  the 


2  American  Politics. 

Federal  Government  increased  power  in  various  objects 
of  national  importance.  They  have  therefore  usually 
been  called  Loose  Construcftionist,  or  Broad 
Construcftionist,  parties.1  Their  policy  has  neces- 
sarily been  one  of  attack,  and  each  of  them  has,  in  the 
main,  been  successful  in  securing  a  general  acceptance 
by  the  whole  country  of  the  principle  upon  which  its 
formation  was  based.2 

3.  This  question  of  a  strict  or  a  loose  construction  of 
the  Constitution  has  always  been  at  the  root  of  legiti- 
mate national  party  differences  in  the  United  States. 
All  other  pretended  distinctions  have  been  either  local 
and  temporary,  or  selfish  and  misleading,  and  the  gen- 
eral acceptance  of  any  such  party  difference  would 
mark  an  unfortunate  decline  in  the  political  intelligence 
of  the  people. 

1  It  must  not  be  imagined,  however,  that  any  party  has  ever  called  itself 
"The  Strict  Constructionist  Party,"  or  "The  Loose  Constructionist  Party." 
These  names  are  used  as  descriptions,  not  as  titles. 

*  The  Federalists  succeeded  in  forming  a  stronger  Central  Government; 
the  Whigs  in  maintaining  for  the  Central  Government  the  powerof  making  cer- 
tain Internal  Improvements  at  national  expense;  and  the  Republicans  in 
maintaining  for  the  Central  Government  the  power  of  abolishing  Slavery  (first 
in  the  Territories,  and  afterwards  in  the  States  also),  of  coercing  a  rebellious 
State,  and  of  protecting  the  slaves  when  set  free.  The  power  of  the  Central 
Government  to  lay  Protective  Duties  on  imports,  and  to  organize  a  national 
t  inking  system,  was  maintained  for  a  time  by  the  Whigs,  and  revived  and 
carried  into  effect  by  the  Republicans. 


CHAPTER  I. 

ORIGIN  OF  POLITICAL  PARTIES  IN  THE   UNITED   STATES 

i.  Political  Parties  in  the  United  States  had  no 
real  existence  until  the  revolution  which  dissolved  al- 
legiance to  Great  Britain.  Most  of  the  colonies  were 
under  royal  or  proprietary  governments,  in  some  of 
which  there  was  a  deliberative  assembly.  But  in  none 
of  these  did  the  people  have  such  an  influence  upon  the 
government  as  would  have  given  to  their  differences  of 
political  opinion  the  distinction  of  party  membership. 
In  the  New  England  Colonies  the  opportunities 
for  the  formation  of  parties  were  greater.  The  immi- 
grants in  this  section  of  America  had  brought  with 
them  the  town  system  of  local  government,  and  had 
left  behind  them  the  strong  central  power  which  had 
held  it  in  check  in  England.  They  had  also  the  good 
fortune,  or  the  political  foresight,  to  obtain  charters 
from  the  king,  by  which  they  were  allowed  to  exercise 
powers  of  government  denied  to  the  other  colonies. 
To  these  charters  they  clung  with  tenacity,  and  their 
distance  from  England  made  it  difficult  for  the  king  to 


4  American  Politics.      \Circa  1760. 

overcome  their  stubborn  resistance  to  his  endeavors  to 
withdraw  the  gift,  when  its  results  had  roused  his  sus- 
picion and  dislike.  The  consequence  was  the  estab- 
lishment in  New  England  of  a  multitude  of  petty 
towns,  each  a  pure  democracy.  In  these  were  put  in 
practice  without  question  the  principles  of  personal  lib- 
erty, trial  by  jury,  the  voting  of  taxes  by  the  people, 
and  the  responsibility  of  public  officials  to  the  people, 
for  which  all  the  succeeding  years,  and  a  great  expend- 
iture of  blood  and  money,  have  hardly  been  able  to  se- 
cure recognition  elsewhere.  But  the  questions  debated 
and  decided  in  these  petty  democracies,  or  even  in  the 

•r  colonial  assemblies,  were  not  such  as  give  rise  to 
settled  differences  of  opinion  and  political  parties.  For 
these  a  broader  field  was  necessary. 

2.  This  principle   of  Popular   Sovereignty  had 
spread  rapidly  from  the  townships  to  the  collective  New 

kind  colonies,  but  was  longer  in  influencing  the 
colonies  to  the  southward.  It  was  not  until  about  the 
year  1760  that  this  work  can  be  considered  accom- 
plished. By  that  time  most  of  the  thinking  men  in  the 
colonies  agreed  in  believing  that  in  the  colonies  rested 
the  right  to  govern  themselves.  The  principle  had 
been  repeatedly  announced  in  theory  before  revolution 
was  thought  of,  but  personal  loyalty  to  the  king,  pride 
in  the  name  of  Englishman,  and  the  infrequent  exercise 
by  England  of  her  asserted  rights  of  absolute  dominion 
over  her  colonies,  permitted  it  to  lie  dormant.  In  the 
year  1760  the  financial  necessities  of  England  drove  her 
into  a  fifteen  years'  intermittent  endeavor  to  govern  the 


Whig  and  Tory.  5 

colonies  without  their  consent.  The  attempt  at  once 
awakened  the  principle  of  popular  sovereignty,  and  the 
continuing  contest  increased  the  extent  of  its  accept- 
ance, until  it  became  strong  enough  to  overcome  the 
forces  which  had  hitherto  held  it  in  check. 

3.  During  this  period  of  contest  the  English  party 
names,    Whig   and    Tory,    became    naturalized   in 
America.     Their  use  at  first  was  only  nominal,  for  those 
who  claimed  them  had  no  power  to  influence  the  course 
of  government.     Lord   North  and  his  Tory  ministry 
and  party,  being  in  power  and  in  need  of  money,  ad- 
vocated repressive  and  coercive  measures  toward  the 
insubordinate   colonies,  and  these  were  naturally  op- 
posed  by  the   Whigs,  the   party  in   opposition.     The 
name  of  Whig,  therefore,  became  more  popular  yearly 
in  the  colonies,  and  was  the  boast  of  thousands  whose 
only  claim  to  it  lay  in  their  gratitude  to  the  real  Whigs 
in.  England. 

4.  The  successive  Congresses  of  delegates  from  the 
different  colonies,  which  gradually  learned  to  exercise 
all  the  functions  of  government,  to  form  an  army  and 
navy,  to  organize  a  post-office  department,  and  to  raise 
money  for  national  purposes,  were  recognized  and  at- 
tended  only  by  the   so-called   American    Whigs. 
Therefore,  although    they  offered    no    opportunity  for 
party  contests,  they  at  least  gave  the  American  Whigs 
an    influence,  whether   rightful    or   usurped,  upon    the 
course  of  government,  and  thus  made  them  the  first 
American  political  party.     As  soon  as  independence 
was  announced,  in  1776^0  be  the  final  object  of  the 


6  American  Politics. 

coiitest,  the  names  Whig  and  Tory  lost,  in  America, 
whatever  of  British  significance  they  had  ever  possessed. 
One  who  espoused  the  cause  of  the  revolted  colonies  was 
called  a  Whig,  and  one  who  still  clung  to  the  mother 
country  and  the  crown  was-  called  a  Tory.  The 
Tory  party  was  finally  abolished  at  the  close  of  the  Rev- 
olution, when  the  triumphant  Whigs  confiscated  the 
estates  of  its  more  active  members,  and  compelled  their 
owners  to  emigrate. 

5.  Before  the  end  of  the  year  1776  most  of  the  States 
had  settled  their  forms  of  State  government.     These 
were  generally  such  adaptations  of  the  old  colonial  gov- 
ernments as  the  altered  condition  of  affairs  seemed  to 
demand.     But  there  was  greater  difficulty  in  settling  a 
collective  government  for  all  the  States.     The  idea  of 
popular  sovereignty,  of  local  government,  had  spread 
from  the  township  to  the  county,  and  from  the  county 
to  the  colony,  without  evil  results.     But  the  difficulty 
of  intercommunication,  and  the  diversity  of  local  inter- 
ests, caused  each   State  to  regard   the   others  as,  in 
great  measure,  foreign  soil.     And,  now  that  a  Confed- 
eracy  was  to  be  formed,  the  determination  of  each 
State  to  allow  no  dictation  from  its  neighbors,  or  from 
the  new  Federal  Government,  was  found  to  be  an  in- 
superable barrier  against  the  formation  of  a  close  union 
In  their  anxiety  to  be  without  a  master  the  States  left 
themselves  without  a  government. 

6.  The  form  of  government  for  the  new  Confeder- 
acy1 was  agreed  upon  in  November,  1777.     The  Con- 

1  See  Appendix  A. 


1 77 7-]  First  Confederation.  7 

gress  was  to  be  composed  of  not  more  than  seven,  or 
less  than  two,  delegates  from  each  State,  to  be  chosen 
by  the  Legislature.  The  States  were  to  be  equal  in 
power,  each  having  but  one  vote,  no  matter  how  great 
its  population  or  wealth.  There  was  to  be  no  Presi- 
dent or  other  Executive  power,  except  committees  of 
Congress.  Important  measures  required  the  votes  of 
nine  of  the  thirteen  States,  and  amendments  required 
the  votes  of  all.  Congress  had  hardly  more  than  an 
advisory  power  at  the  best.  It  had  no  power  to  pre- 
vent or  punish  offenses  against  its  own  laws,  or  even  to 
perform  effectively  the  duties  enjoined  upon  it  by  the 
Articles  of  Confederation.  It  alone  could  declare  war, 
but  it  had  no  power  to  compel  the  enlistment,  arming, 
or  support  of  an  army.  It  alone  could  fix  the  needed 
amount  of  revenue,  but  the  taxes  could  only  be  col- 
lected by  the  States  at  their  own  pleasure.  It  alone 
could  decide  disputes  between  the  States,  but  it  had  no 
power  to  compel  either  disputant  to  respect  or  obey  its 
decisions.  It  alone  could  make  treaties  with  foreign 
nations,  but  it  had  no  power  to  prevent  individual 
States  from  violating  them.  Even  commerce,  foreign 
and  domestic,  was  to  be  regulated  entirely  by  the  States, 
and  it  was  not  long  before  State  selfishness  began  to 
show  itself  in  the  regulation  of  duties  on  imports.  In 
everything  the  States  were  to  be  sovereign,  and  their 
creature,  the  Federal  Government,  was  to  have  only 
strength  enough  to  bind  the  States  into  nominal  unity, 
and  only  life  enough  to  assure  it  of  its  own  practical 
ur;>')tence.  The  jealous  States  then  felt?  with  consicl- 


8  American  Politics.  [1783. 

erable  satisfaction,  that  their  liberties  were  reasonably 
secure. 

7.  A  human  society  bound  together  by  no  stronger 
ties  than  those  provided  by  the  Articles  of  Confed- 
eration must  tend  naturally  to  anarchy.  Even  dur- 
ing the  War  of  Revolution  the  weakness  of  the  govern- 
ment seemed  to  many  to  portend  financial  ruin  and  a 
speedy  dissolution  of  the  Union.  As  soon  as  the  press- 
ure of  war  was  removed  the  symptoms  of  disintegra- 
tion grew  alarmingly  worse.  Congress  had  become  a 
mere  Rump,  without  dignity,  without  power,  and  with- 
out a  home.  It  was  compelled  to  appeal  repeatedly 
to  the  States  before  it  could  obtain  a  quorum  of  mem- 
bers to  ratify  the  treaty  of  peace.  Many  of  the  States 
refused  or  neglected  to  pay  even  their  allotted  shares 
of  interest  upon  the  public  debt,  and  there  was  no 
power  in  Congress  to  compel  payment.  Eighteen 
months  were  required  to  collect  only  one-fifth  of  the 
taxes  assigned  to  the  States  in  1783.  The  national 
credit  became  worthless.  Foreign  nations  refused  to 
make  commercial  treaties  with  the  United  States,  pre- 
ferring a  condition  of  affairs  in  which  they  could  lay 
any  desired  burden  upon  American  commerce  without 
fear  of  retaliation  by  an  impotent  Congress.  The  na- 
tional standing  army  had  dwindled  to  a  corps  of  eighty 
men.  In  1785  Algiers  declared  war  against  the  United 
States.  Congress  recommended  the  building  of  five 
40-gun  ships  of  war.  But  Congress  had  only  power 
to  recommend,  The  ships  were  not  built,  and  the  Al- 
gerines  were  permitted  to  prey  on  American  commerce 


1785.]  Taxation. — Revision.  9 

with  impunity.  England  still  refused  to  carry  out  the 
Treaty  of  1783,  or  to  send  a  Minister  to  the  United 
States.  The  Federal  Government,  in  short,  was  de- 
spised abroad,  and  disobeyed  at  home. 

8.  The  apparent  remedy  was  the  possession  by  Con- 
gress of  the  power  of  levying  and  collecting  internal 
taxes  and  duties  on  imports,  but,  after  long  urging,  it 
was  found  impossible  to  gain  the  necessary  consent  of 
all  the  States  to  the  article  of  taxation  by  Congress. 
In   1786,  therefore,  this  was  abandoned,  and,  as  a  last 
resort,  the  States  were  asked  to  pass  an  Amendment 
intrusting  to  Congress  the  collection  of  a  revenue  from 
imports.     This  Amendment  was  agreed  to  by  all  the 
States  but  one.     New  York  alone  rejected  it,  after  long 
debate,  and  her  veto  seemed  to  destroy  the  last  hope 
of  a  continuance  of  national  union  in  America.     Per- 
haps the  dismay  caused  by  the  action  of  New  York  was 
the  most  powerful  argument  in  the  minds  of  many  foi 
an  immediate  and  complete  revision  of  the  government. 

9.  The  first  step  to  Revision  was  not  so  designed. 
In  1785  the  Legislatures  of  Maryland  and  Virginia,  in 
pursuance  of  their  right  to  regulate  commerce,  had  ap- 
pointed Commissioners  to  decide  on  some  method  of 
doing   away  with   interruptions  to  the  navigation  of 
Chesapeake  Bay.     The  Commissioners  reported  their 
inability  to  agree,  except  in  condemning  the  Articles  of 
Confederation.     The  Legislature  of  Virginia  followed 
the  report  by  a  resolution,  inviting  the  other  States  to 
meet  at  Annapolis,  consider  the  defects  of  the  govern- 
ment, and  suggest  some  remedy.     In  September,  1786, 


IO  American  Politics. 

delegates  from  five  of  the  Middle  States  assembled,  but 
confined  themselves  to  discussion,  since  a  majority  of 
the  States  were  not  represented.     The  general  conclu- 
sion was  that  the  government,  as  it  then  stood,  was  in- 
adequate for  the  protection,  prosperity,  or  comfort  of 
the  people,  and  that  some  immediate  and  thorough  re- 
form was  needed.     After  drawing  up  a  report  for  their 
States  and  for  Congress,  recommending  another  con- 
ion,  to  be  held  at  Philadelphia,  in  May,  1787,  they 
irned.     Congress,  by  resolution,  approved  their  re- 
and  the  proposed  Convention. 

10.  The  Convention  met  as  proposed,  May  i4th, 
-.  being  composed  of  delegates  from  all  the  States, 
with  the  exception  of  Rhode  Island.     Its  proceedings 
secret,  but  an   account  of  them  was  afterwards 
drawn  up  from  M;  :i's  notes.     Washington,  who 

•  from  Virginia,  was  chosen  as  presiding 
officer,  and  the  Convention  decided  to  transcend  the 
actions  given  to  the  delegates,  and  form  an  entirely 
Constitution,  on  the  ground  that  the  work  must 
finally  be  submitted  to,  and  approved  by,  the  people, 
before  it  could  go  into  effect.     May  2Qth,  Randolph,  of 
ni a,  offered  the  so-called  "Virginia  plan"  for  a 
government.     It   consisted   of  fifteen   points,  of 
which  the  most  important  were  that  representation  in 
the  new  Congress  should  be  proportional  to  population, 
and  that  Congress  should  have  power  to  compel  the 
States  to  fulfill  their  obligations.     These  provisions  were 
particularly  distasteful  to  the  smaller  States,  who  pre- 
ferred the  "  New  Jersey  plan,"  offered  by  Patterson,  of 


1787.]         The  Constitution  of  1787.  II 

New  Jersey,  which  continued  the  old  Confederation, 
but  with  the  additional  power  to  regulate  commerce, 
and  to  raise  a  revenue.  By  this  plan  the  smaller  and 
larger  States  would  still  have  been  equal  in  power. 
June  1 9th  the  Convention  rejected  the  New  Jersey 
plan,  and  took  up  that  of  Virginia  for  consideration. 
After  long  debate  a  compromise  was  made.  The 
smaller  States  agreed  to  take  a  proportional  share  in 
the  lower  of  two  Houses  of  Congress,  in  return  for  an 
equal  share  in  an  upper  House.  The  question  of  omit- 
ting or  including  slaves  in  reckoning  population  as  a 
basis  for  representation  was  compromised  by  agreeing 
to  estimate  them  as  equal  to  three-fifths  of  the  same 
number  of  whites.  The  friends  and  enemies  of  the 
slave-trade  agreed  not  to  prohibit  it  until  1808.  Other 
debatable  questions  were  adjusted  in  the  same  spirit, 
and  in  September,  1787,  the  Constitution  of  the  United 
States  was  completed,1  being,  like  all  other  sound  and 
lasting  political  works,  the  result  of  wise,  judicious,  and 
even-handed  compromise. 

ii.  Any  full  discussion  of  The  Constitution  of 
1787  must  be  left  to  the  treatises  upon  it.  But  there  are 
some  points  which  require  notice,  in  view  of  party  ac- 
tion upon  them.  Unquestionably  the  most  important 
creation  of  the  Constitution  was  The  Federal  Judi- 
ciary. It  will  be  seen  that  the  only  guarantee  for  the 
observance  of  the  Articles  of  Confederation  was  the 
naked  promise  of  the  States.  This  had  been  found  to 
be  utterly  worthless.  The  creation  of  a  system  of 

*  See  Appendix  B,  where  the  Confederation  is  compared  with  it. 


12  American  Politics. 

United  States  Courts,  extending  throughout  the  States, 
and  empowered  to  define  the  boundaries  of  Federal 
authority,  and  to  enforce  its  decisions  by  Federal  power; 
supplied  the  element  needed  to  bring  order  out  of  chaos. 
Without  it  the  Constitution  might  easily  have  proved  a 
more  disheartening  and  complete  failure  than  the  Arti- 
cles of  Confederation. 

12.  How  far  The  New  Federal    Government 
succeeded  to  the  sovereign  rights  of  the  States  and 
formed  a  centralized  government  in  their  place  each 
must  decide  for  himself  by  a  study  of  the  Constitution, 
and  on  his  decision  will  depend  generally  his  party 
membership.     All  agree  that  the  new  Federal  Govern- 
ment succeeded  to  at  least  a  part  of  the  sovereign  rights 
previously  vested  in  the  States,  that  the  Federal  Gov- 
ernment thus  obtained  what  it  had  previously  lacked, 
the  power  over  individuals,  and  that,  within  the  sphere 
abandoned  to  it,  the  Federal  Government  is  supreme. 
How  far  that  sphere  extends  is,  and  it  is  to  be  hoped 
always  will  be,  a  great  party  question.     The  very  Pre- 
amble, "we,  the  people  of  the    United    States,"  has 
been  construed  by  one  party  as  an  assertion  that  the 
Constitution  was  adopted  by  the  people  of  each  State 
for  itself,  and  by  the  opposite  party  as  announcing  the 
consolidation  of  discordant  states  into  one  powerful  na- 
tion, not  a  mere  league.     All  agree  that  it  was  intended 
"  to  form  a  more  perfect  union,"  but  all  do  not  agree 
as  to  how  nearly  perfect  that  union  was  to  be. 

13.  The  Powers  Granted  to  Congress  in  Arti- 
cle I,  §  8,  should  be  carefully  studied,  for  the  antago- 


1787.]         Nature  of  the  Constitution.  13 

nistic  views  of  the  Strict  Constructionist  and  Loose  Con- 
structionist  parties  have  always  been  most  clearly  shown 
in  interpreting  them.  For  instance,  under  the  clauses 
which  give  Congress  the  power  to  establish  post-roads, 
and  to  provide  for  the  common  defense,  Loose  Con- 
structionists  have  claimed,  and  Strict  Constructionists 
have  denied,  that  Congress  has  power  to  appropriate 
public  money  for  the  building  of  roads,  and  for  general 
internal  improvements.  There  is  hardly  a  clause  in  this 
whole  section  upon  whose  interpretation  and  applica- 
tion the  members  of  opposite  parties  agree,  except  when 
impelled  to  do  so  by  selfish  interests. 

14.  Is  the  Union  a  federal,  or  league,  government,  as 
claimed  by  the  Strict  Constructionists,  or  a  centralized 
national   government,  as  claimed  by  the  Loose  Con- 
structionists?    Tne  question  may  best  be  answered  in 
the  words  of  Mr.  Madison:  "The   Constitution   is,  in 
strictness,  neither  a  national  nor  a  federal  constitution, 
but  a  composition  of  both.     In  its  foundation  it  is  fed- 
eral, not  national ;  in  the  sources  from  which  the  ordi- 
nary powers  of  the  government  are  drawn  it  is  partly 
federal  and  partly  national ;  in  the  operation  of  these 
powers  it  is  national,  not  federal ;  in  the  extent  v{  them, 
again,  it  is  federal,  not  national;  and,  finally,  in  the  au- 
thoritative mode  of  introducing  Amendments  it  is  nei- 
ther wholly  federal,  nor  wholly  national." 

15.  Only  thirty-nine  of  the  fifty-five  delegates  to  the 
Convention  signed  the  Constitution,  and  it  cannot  truly 
be  said  that  it  really  satisfied  any  one.     Had  it  been 
entirely  satisfactory  to  one  great  party,  it  would  have 


14  American  Politics. 

been  intolerable  to  the  other.  But  it  was  a  compromise 
in  every  important  particular,  and  each  party,  while  la- 
menting its  own  concessions,  could  derive  some  satis- 
faction from  considering  those  of  its  adversaries.  For, 
on  the  question  of  its  adoption,  the  people  of  the  United 
States  had  at  last  divided  into  opposing  parties,  Feeler 
alists  and  Anti-federalists,  though  both  parties  varied 
these  formal  titles  by  the  use  of  such  spiteful  and  op- 
probrious epithets  as  party  hatred  so  well  knows  how 
to  invent  and  apply. 

1 6.  The  extreme   Federalists  were  anxious  for  a 
strong  government,  and,  if  possible,  for  a  monarchy. 
During  the  secret  proceedings  of  the  Convention   the 
report  was  common  that  the  "  high-flying  "  Federalists 
had  induced  it  to  call  an  English  prince  to  the  throne 
of  the  United  States.     The  great  mass  of  the  party 
however,  had  no  such  desire.     They  despised  the  Con- 
federacy as  a  mere  "  rope  of  sand,"  which  would  fall 
apart  at  the  first  shock,  and  leave  the  separate  States  to 
become  the  successive  prey  of  a  foreign  enemy,  or  of 
each  other.     In  place  of  it  they  wished  to  see  a  strong 
republican  government,  fitted  to  make  itself  respected 
abroad,  and  obeyed  at  home.     In  supporting  the  new 
Constitution  the  Federalists  were  aided  by  many  who 
were  their  natural  opponents,  but  who  either  despaired 
of  anything  better,  or  were  influenced  by  respect  for  the 
great  names  appended  to  or  favoring  it. 

17.  The  extreme  Anti-federalists  wished  for  no 
Federal  Government  whatever,  but  for  a  continuance 
of  the  league  between  thirteen  independent  republics. 


1787.]  State  Conventions.  15 

The  great  mass  of  the  party  were  united  only  in  oppos- 
ing the  new  Constitution,  which  seemed  to  them  fan- 
tastic and  experimental,  and  a  fit  instrument  to  deprive 
the  States  of  the  liberties  which  they  had  gained  by  the 
sword.  But  no  definite  and  united  line  of  action  was 
taken  by  the  An ti- federalists.  Many  of  them  united 
with  the  Federalists  in  accepting  and  voting  for  the 
Constitution,  but  with  the  hope  and  expectation  of  fut- 
ure amendments.  The  whole  party  in  a  few  years  be- 
came a  Strict  Constructionist  party,  accepting  the  Con- 
stitution unreservedly,  but  aiming  to  confine  the  powers 
of  the  Federal  Government  to  the  letter  of  its  terms. 

18.  September  lyth,  1787,  the  new  Constitution  was 
transmitted  to  Congress  and  thence  referred  to  Con- 
ventions of  the  several  States  for  adoption  or  rejec- 
tion.    The  opposition  was  chiefly  in  the  great  States  of 
New  York,  Virginia,  and  Massachusetts,  but  was  shown 
in  varying  degrees  in  all  the  Conventions.     Many  of 
the  States  followed  the  "  Massachusetts  plan,"  adopting 
the  Constitution,  but  strongly  recommending  amend- 
ments to  it.     Even   with   this    expedient,  it  was  only 
adopted  by  votes  of  31   to   29  in   New  York,  88  to 
80   in    Virginia,   and    187    to    168    in    Massachusetts. 
North  Carolina  and  Rhode  Island  at  first  rejected,  but 
more  than  a  year  afterward  adopted  it,  their  ratifica- 
tions only  reaching  Congress  in  1790. 

19.  According  to  the  terms  of  the  Constitution,  it 
was  to  go  into  effect  as  soon  as  adopted  by  nine  States. 
The  contest  between  Federalists  and  Anti-federalists 
lasted  for  months.     A  noble  relic  of  the  controversy  is 


1 6  American  Politics,  [1788. 

the  series  of  papers  written  by  Hamilton,  Jay,  and  Mad- 
ison, over  the  joint  signature  of  Fubtius,  explaining  and 
defending  the  Constitution.  They  are  known  collect- 
ively as  The  Federalist.  It  was  not  until  June  2ist, 

1788,  that  the  ninth  State  ratified  the  Constitution,  and 
it  became  an  accomplished  fact.     New  York  and  Vir 
ginia  soon  afterwards  ratified  it,  and  only  North  Caro- 
lina and  Rhode  Island  refused.     July  i4th,  1788,  the 
Congress  of  the  Confederacy,  which  was  in  session,  re- 
ferred the  ratifications  received  from  nine  States  to  a 
committee  which  reported  a  resolution  for  carrying  the 
new  government  into  effect.     There  was  some  difficulty 
in  deciding  upon  a  time  and  place  of  meeting  for  the 
new  Congress,  but  it  was  finally  fixed  at  New  York, 
March  4th,  1789.     The  first  Wednesday  of  January, 

1789,  wras  appointed  for  the  choice  of  electors  for  Pres- 
ident and  Vice- President,  and  the  first  Wednesday  in 
February  for  the  voting  of  the  electors. 

20.  The  Constitution  has  always  been  plain 
enough  to  guide  the  policy  of  the  statesman  and  the 
decisions  of  the  judge,  and  yet  elastic  enough  to  give 
full  play  to  honest  differences  of  opinion  and  party  con- 
test, and  to  fit  the  body  politic  at  any  time  during  its 
growth  from  3,000,000  to  40,000,000  inhabitants.  The 
first  eleven  Amendments  were  added  so  soon  after  its 
adoption  that  they  may  fairly  be  considered  a  part  of 
the  original  instrument.  It  was  then  complete,  and, 
with  the  exception  of  the  change  in  the  manner  of  vot- 
ing for  President  and  Vice-President,  after  the  disputed 
election  of  1800,  no  further  alteration  was  found  neces- 


1788.]        The  Constitution  Adopted.  17 

sary  until  the  extirpation  of  Slavery  introduced  three 
Amendments  which  would  have  been  impracticable  in 
1787.  Even  now,  with  the  exception  of  the  old  tor- 
ment of  the  Presidential  election,  there  is  seldom  any 
serious  suggestion  of  a  point  in  which  the  Constitution 
would  be  benefited  by  a  revision.  Its  \vheels  move  as 
smoothly  to-day  as  at  any  time  since  the  inauguration 
of  the  first  President.  Their  motion  is  so  quiet  that  we 
are  usually  unconscious  of  our  own  comfort.  The  tests 
of  foreign  and  civil  war,  of  bitter  party  and  personal 
contests,  of  financial  convulsion  and  an  unparalleled 
prosperity,  have  tried  and  approved  it.  The  stability 
of  our  own  government,  compared  with  the  radical 
changes  in  those  of  every  other  civilized  nation  during 
the  past  ninety  years,  is  an  honorable  memorial  of  the 
political  wisdom  of  the  men  who  framed  the  Constitu- 
tion of  1787,  and  of  their  descendants  who  have  ex- 
pounded and  obeyed  it. 


CHAPTER  II. 

FIRST  ADMINISTRATION,   1789-1793. 

George  Washington,  President.  John  Adams,  Vice-President. 

1st  and  lid  Congresses. 

i.  MARCH  4th,  1789,  had  been  appointed  for  the 
1st  Congress,  formal  inauguration  of  the  new 
Extra  Session.  Government,  but  the  members 
elect  had  not  yet  unlearned  the  Confederacy's  slovenly 
habits.  It  was  not  until  April  6th  that  a  sufficient 
number  of  members  of  Congress  arrived  in  New  York 
to  form  a  quorum  and  count  the  electoral  votes.  At 
that  time,  and  until  1805,  no  electoral  votes  were  cast 
distinctively  for  President  and  Vice-President.  Each 
elector  voted  by  ballot  for  two  persons.  If  a  majority 
of  all  the  votes  were  cast  for  any  person,  he  who  re- 
ceived the  greatest  number  of  votes  became  President, 
and  he  who  received  the  next  greatest  number  became 
Vice-President.  When  the  votes  were  counted  in  1789 
they  were  found  to  be,  for  George  "Washington,  of 
Virginia,  69  (each  of  the  electors  having  given  him 
one  vote),  for  John  Adams,  of  Massachusetts,  34, 


1 789.]  Organization. — Cabinet.  1 9 

and  35  for  various  other  candidates.  Washington  re- 
ceived notice  of  his  election,  and,  after  a  triumphal 
progress  northward  from  his  home  at  Mount  Vernon, 
was  sworn  into  office  April  29th.  The  Vice-President 
had  taken  his  place  as  presiding  officer  of  the  Senate  a 
few  days  before. 

2.  Frederick  A.  Muhlenberg,  of  Pennsylvania,  was 
chosen  Speaker  of  the  House,  but  the  vote  had  no  party 
divisions,  for   Parties   were  still  in  a  state  of  utter 
confusion.     Between  the  extreme  Anti-federalists,  who 
considered  the  Constitution  a  long  step  toward  a  des- 
potism, and  the  extreme  Federalists,  who   desired  a 
monarchy  modeled  on  that  of  England,  there  were  all 
varieties  of  political  opinion.     The  union  between  the 
moderate  members  of  both  parties  in  support  of  the  new 
form  of  government  still  existed.     The  extreme  impor- 
tance of  Washington  lay  in  his  ability,  through  the  uni- 
versal confidence  in  his  integrity  and  good  judgment, 
to  hold  together  this  alliance  of  moderate  men  for  a 
time,  and  to  prevent  party  contest  upon  the  interpreta- 
tion of  Federal  powers  until  the  Constitution  should 
show  its  merit  and  be  assured  of  existence. 

3.  The  President  selected  his  Cabinet  with  a  care- 
fal  regard  to  the  opposite  opinions  of  his  supporters. 
The   Treasury   Department  was   given  to  Alexander 
Hamilton,  of  New  York,  a  Federalist,  and  a  lawyer 
of  distinguished  ability,  who  had  served  with  credit  in 
the  Revolutionary  War,  and  was  considered  the  ablest 
man  of  his  party.     The  War  Department  was  given  to 
General  Henry  Knox,  of  Massachusetts,  also  a  Fed- 


2O  American  Politics. 

eralist.  The  State  Department  was  given  to  Thomas 
Jefferson,  of  Virginia,  an  Anti-federalist.  He  was  the 
author  of  the  Declaration  of  Independence,  and  had 
the  confidence  of  all  the  factions  of  his  divided  party. 
Edmund  Randolph,  of  Virginia,  also  an  Anti-federal- 
ist, was  appointed  Attorney-General,  and  John  Jay, 
of  New  York,  a  Federalist,  Chief  Justice  of  the  Su- 
preme Court. 

4.  Twelve    Amendments   were   adopted  by  this 
Session  of  Congress,  in  order  to  meet  the  conscientious 
objections  of  many  moderate  Anti-federalists,  and  to 
take  the  place  of  a  "Bill  of  Rights."     Ten  of  these, 
having  received  the  assent  of  the  necessary  number  of 
States,  became  a  part  of  the  Constitution,  and  now 
stand  the  first  ten  of  the  Amendments.      They  were 
intended   to    guarantee   freedom  of  religion,   speech, 
person,  and  property.      The  positive  requests  of  so 
many  States,  and  the  continued  refusal  of  two  States 
to    enter  the   Union,  were  strong  incentives  to  their 
adoption,  and  the  opposition  to  them  came  mainly 
from  the  extreme  Anti-federalists,  who  considered  them 
delusive  and  insufficient,  and  only  calculated  to  create 
a  fatal  feeling  of  security  against  centralized  govern- 
ment. 

5.  The  most  important  work  of  this  Session  was  the 
Regulation  of  Commerce  and  the  settlement  of  a 
Tariff.     During  the  debate  some  of  the  Anti-federal- 
ists made  an  attempt  to  arrange  the  duties  so  as  to 
discriminate  against   England   and   in   favor  of  other 
nations,  but  the  attempt  failed  in  the  Senate.     A  Tariff 


1790.]  The  Public  Debt.  21 

Act  was  passed  by  both  Houses,  and  approved  July 
4th.  Its  preamble  stated  one  of  its  objects  to  be  "  the 
encouragement  and  protection  of  manufactures."  Thiy 
language  is  notable  as  stating  the  main  object  of  the 
"American,"  or  High  Protective  Tariff,  system,  thirty 
years  before  it  became  a  party  tenet.  After  directing 
the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury  to  prepare  a  plan  for  the 
settlement  of  the  public  debt,  Congress  adjourned 
September  29th,  until  the  following  January.  In  No- 
vember, 1789,  North  Carolina  finally  ratified  the 
Constitution,  and  entered  the  Union. 

6.  Congress  met  at  Philadelphia,  January  4th,  1790, 
1st  Congress,     January    9th   Hamilton   offered   his 

ist  Session.  famous  Report  on  the  Settle- 
ment of  the  Public  Debt.  It  consisted  of  three 
recommendations,  first,  that  the  foreign  debt  of  the 
Confederacy  should  be  assumed  and  paid  in  full ; 
second,  that  the  domestic  debt  of  the  Confederacy, 
which  had  fallen  far  below  par  and  had  become  a 
synonym  for  worthlessness,  should  also  be  paid  at  its 
par  value ;  and  third,  that  the  debts  incurred  by  the 
States  during  the  Revolution,  and  still  unpaid,  should 
be  assumed  and  paid  in  full  by  the  Federal  Govern- 
ment. 

7.  Hamilton's  First  recommendation  was  adopted 
unanimously.      The   Second  was  opposed,  even   by 
Madison  and  many  moderate  Anti-federalists,  on  the 
ground  that  the  domestic  debt  was  held  by  speculators, 
who  had  bought  it  at  a  heavy  discount,  and  would 
thus  gain  usurious  interest  on  their  investment.     Ham- 


22  American  Politics.  [I79O. 

ilton's  supporters  argued  that,  if  only  for  that  reason, 
they  should  be  paid  in  full,  that  holders  of  United 
States  securities  might  learn  not  to  sell  them  at  a  dis- 
count, and  that  the  national  credit  might  thus  be 
strengthened  for  all  time  to  come.  After  long  debate 
the  second  recommendation  was  also  adopted. 

8.  Hamilton's  Third  recommendation  involved  a 
question  of  the  powers  of  the  Federal  Government. 
It  therefore  for  the  first  time  united  all  the  Anti-feder- 
alists in  opposition  to  it.     They  feared  that  the  rope  of 
sand  of  the  Confederacy  was  being  carried  to  the  op- 
posite extreme;    that  the  "money  power"  would,  by 
this  measure,  be  permanently  attached  to  the  Federal 

v'rnment;  and  that  the  States  would  be  made  of 
no  importance.  But  even  this  recommendation  was 
adopted,  though  only  by  a  vote  of  31  to  26  in  the 
House.  A  few  days  later,  however,  the  Anti-federal- 
ists received  a  reinforcement  of  seven  newly  arrived 
North  Carolina  members.  The  third  resolution  was  at 
once  reconsidered,  and  voted  down  by  a  majority  of 
two. 

9.  Hamilton  secured  the  final  adoption  of  the  third 
resolution  by  a  bargain  which  excited  the  deep  indig- 
nation of  the  Anti-federalists.     A  National  Capital 
was  to  be  selected.     The  Federalists  agreed   to  vote 
(hat  it  should  be  fixed  upon  the  Potomac  River,  after 
remaining  ten  years  in  Philadelphia,  and  two  Anti-fed- 
eralist members  from  the  Potomac  agreed  in  return  to 
vote  for  the  third  resolution,  which  was  then   finally 
adopted.     Hamilton's  entire  report  was  thus  successful 


1790.]  The  National  Bank.  23 

Its  immediate  effects  were  to  appreciate  the  credit  of  the 
United  States,  and  to  enrich  the  holders  of  the  Conti- 
nental debt.  Its  further  effect  was  to  make  Hamilton 
so  much  disliked  by  Anti-federalists  that,  despite  his 
acknowledged  talents,  his  party  never  ventured  to  nom- 
inate him  for  any  elective  office.  Congress  adjourned 
August  1 2th,  1790.  During  this  long  Session  there 
was  no  further  decided  party  contest.  In  May  Rhode 
Island  ratified  the  Constitution,  and  entered  the 
Union,  which  now  included  all  the  old  thirteen  colonies. 
10.  Congress  met  December  6th,  1790.  Its  de- 
ist Congress,  bates  were  mostly  on  finance. 
2d  Session.  Hamilton  proposed  the  establish- 
ment of  a  National  Bank,  to  act  as  financial 
agent  of  the  Government.  This  involved  another 
question  of  Federal  powers,  and  renewed  party 
contest.  The  Federalists  claimed  that  Congress, 
having  the  undoubted  power  to  pass  all  laws  nec- 
essary for  the  collection  of  revenue  and  taxes,  might 
constitutionally  charter  a  bank  for  that  purpose.  The 
Anti-federalists  claimed  that  such  a  bank  was  not  nec- 
essary, though  it  might  be  convenient,  and  hence  was 
beyond  the  power  of  Congress.  This  difference  of 
opinion,  trivial  at  first  sight,  continued  to  be  the  subject 
of  bitter  party  feeling,  at  intervals,  for  fifty  years.  The 
bill  passed  both  Houses,  and  the  President  was  im- 
portuned to  veto  it.  He  demanded  the  written  opin- 
ions of  his  Cabinet.  In  the  struggles  of  succeeding 
years  upon  the  same  subject,  Hamilton's  argument  in 
favor  of  the  constitutionality  of  a  National  Bank  has 


24  American  Politics. 

hardly  been  improved  upon,  or  added  to.  It  prevailed 
in  the  mind  of  the  President  over  those  of  Jefferson  and 
Randolph,  and  he  signed  the  bill.1  At  this  Session 
the  unpopular  Excise  Law,  to  provide  funds  for  the 
vlebts  assumed  by  the  Government,  passed  both  Houses 
against  the  opposition  of  most  of  the  Anti-federalists. 
Congress  adjourned  March  3d,  1791.  March  4th,  Ver- 
mont, formerly  called  the  New  Hampshire  Grants, 
whose  people  had  for  many  years  resisted  New  York's 
claim  of  jurisdiction  over  them,  and  had  claimed  to  be 
an  independent  republic,  entered  the  Union. 

ii.  Congress  met  October  24th,  1791.  Jonathan 
lid  Congress,  Trumbull,  of  Connecticut,  was 
ist  Session.  chosen  Speaker  of  the  House. 
The  number  of  Federalists  was  slightly  reduced, 
but  the  Administration  was  supported  generally  by 
a  large  majority  of  both  parties.  The  Anti-federal- 
ists opposed  an  increase  of  the  army  and  of  the 
Tariff,  but  both  bills  became  law.  An  Apportionment 
Bill  was  also  passed  at  this  Session,  which  had  no 
party  interest.  It  increased  the  number  of  the  House 
of  Representatives  to  105.  Congress  adjourned  May 
8th,  1792.  June  ist  Kentucky,  formerly  a  part  of 
the  State  of  Virginia,  entered  the  Union. 


1  The  Bank,  thus  created,  continued  in  existence  until  1811,  when  the  op- 
posite party  was  in  power  and  refused  to  recharter  it.  Another  National  Bank 
was  chartered  in  1816,  became  the  object  of  violent  attack  by  Strict  Construc- 
tionists,  and  ceased  to  exist  in  1836.  Other  attempts  were  made  without  suc- 
cess, by  Loose  Constructionists,  to  charter  a  National  Bank,  and  the  project 
slept  until  1862.  During  the  Rebellion  (1861-1865)  the  so-called  Greenback 
Currency  took  the  place  of  a  National  Bank,  with  power  to  make  forced  loans. 


I792-]  Party  Organization.  2$ 

12.  Party  Organization  may  be  considered  as 
fairly  begun  about  the  close  of  this  Session.     The  oc- 
casional irritation  shown  in  the  debates  is  an  evidence 
that  the  first  ill- defined  estimate  of  the  new  scheme  of 
government  was   giving  way  to  positive    and  settled 
opinions  of  its  powers,  and  of  the  policy  which  should 
be  followed  in  managing  it.     It  is  probable  that  a  ma- 
jority of  the  American  people  were  Anti-federalist  in 
1789,  although  the  Federalists,  by  the  active  assistance 
of  many  of  their  natural  opponents,  had  gained  the 
Executive,  the  Senate,  the   House,  the  Judiciary,  and 
most  of  the  State  Legislatures,  and  were  able  to  defeat 
the  disagreeing  factions  known   collectively  as  Anti- 
federalists.     In   1792  affairs  were  beginning  to   settle 
into  a  more  natural  order.     The  various  Anti- federalist 
factions,   by   union   in   resisting   the    Federalists,  had 
learned  to  forget  minor  differences,  and  had  been  weld- 
ed into  one  party  which  only  lacked  a  name.     That  of 
Anti-federalist  was  no  longer  applicable,  for  its  opposi- 
tion to  the  Federal  Union  had  entirely  ceased. 

13.  A  name  was  supplied  by  Jefferson,  the  recog- 
nized leader  of  the  party,  after  the  French  Revolu- 
tion had  fairly  begun  its  course.     That  political  con- 
vulsion had,  for  some  time  after  1789,  the  sympathy  of 
both  Federalists  and  Anti-federalists,  for  it  seemed  the 
direct  outgrowth  of  the  American  Revolution.     But,  as 
its  leveling  objects  became  more  apparent,  the  Feder- 
alists grew  cooler  and  the  Anti-federalists  warmer  to- 
wards it.     The  latter  took  great  pains,  even  by  dress 
and  manners,  to  show  the  keenness  of  their  sympathy 


26  American  Politics.  [r792- 

for  the  Republicans  of  France,  and  about  this  time 
adopted  the  name  Democratic- Republican,  which 
seemed  sufficiently  comprehensive  for  a  full  indication 
of  their  principles.  This  has  always  been  the  official, 
party  title.  It  is  now  abbreviated  to  Democratic, 
though  the  name  Democrat  was  at  first  used  by  Fed- 
eralists as  one  of  contempt,  and  the  party  called  itself 
Republican,  a  title  which  it  could  hardly  claim  with 
propriety,  for  its  tendency  has  always  been  toward  a 
democracy,  as  that  of  its  opponents  has  been  toward  a 
strong  republic.  The  name  Republican,  therefore,  be- 
longs most  properly  to  its  present  possessors  (1879). 
But  it  must  be  remembered  that  the  party  which  will 
be  called  Republican  until  about  1828  was  the  party 
which  is  now  called  Democratic. 

14.  The   tendency   toward    Party    Division   was 
shown  even  in  the  Cabinet.     Hamilton  and  Jefferson 
were  influenced  by  personal  antagonism  and  suspicion, 
as  well  as  by  political  opposition.     In  this,  as  in  every- 
thing else,  they  were  the  perfect  representatives  of  their 
parties.     In  Cabinet  meetings  they  were,  in  Jefferson's 
own   words,   "pitted  against    one   another   like  game 
cocks,"  to  the  great  grief  of  the  President,  who  could 
not  see  in  their  wrangling  the  inevitable  operation  of 
political  repulsions,  which  he  would  not  be  able  to  con- 
trol much  longer,  either  in  the  Cabinet  or  in  the  coun- 
try. 

15.  At  the  request  of  both  Federalists  and  Repub- 
licans Washington  consented  to  serve  as  President  a 
second  time,  so  that  only  the  Vice-Presidency  was  left 


1 793.]  Presidential  Election.  27 

as  an  object  of  party  contest.  For  this  office  the  Fed- 
eralists supported  John  Adams,  and  the  Anti-federalists 
supported  George  Clinton,  of  New  York.  To  have 
supported  Jefferson  would  have  cost  the  vote  of  Vir- 
ginia, whose  electors  could  not  have  voted  for  Wash- 
ington and  Jefferson,  both  from  Virginia.  The  Pres- 
idential Election  took  place  November  6th,  1792, 
and  resulted  in  the  success  of  the  Federalists. 

1 6.  Congress  met  November  5th,  1792.  Its  meas- 
lid  Congress,  ures  had  reference  mainly  to  the 
2d  Session.  raising  and  expenditure  of  the  rev- 
enue, in  regard  to  which  the  Republicans  had  not  yet 
settled  upon  any  united  course  of  action.  The  only 
party  contest  of  the  Session  was  an  unsuccessful  at- 
tempt of  the  Republicans  to  pass  a  vote  of  censure 
upon  their  enemy  Hamilton  for  his  management  of  the 
Treasury,  and  for  his  indignant  and  somewhat  dis- 
courteous language  in  a  message  to  the  House.  In 
February,  1793,  the  electoral  votes  were  counted,  and 
were  found  to  be,  for  George  Washington  132  (each 
of  the  electors  having  given  him  one  vote),  for  John 
Adams  77,  for  George  Clinton  50,  for  Thomas  Jeffer- 
son 4,  and  for  Aaron  Burr  i.  Washington  was 
therefore  declared  elected  President,  and  Adams 
Vice- President.  March  2d,  1793,  Congress  adjourned, 
and  March  ^th,  Washington  and  Adams  were  sworn 
into  office. 


CHAPTER  III. 

SECOND    ADMINISTRATION,   1793-1797. 

George  Washington,  President.  John  Adams,  Vice-President, 

Hid  and  IVth  Congresses. 

1.  EARLY  in   April,   1793,  news  was  received   that 
France  had  declared  war  against    Great    Britain  and 
Holland.     It  excited  the  sympathies  of  the  American 
people  for  their  sister  republic,  even  though  that  repub- 
lic was  the  aggressor.     One  of  the  great  parties  spe- 
cially  affected   the  leveling  principles   avowed  by  the 
French  Republicans,  and  the  opposite  party  would  not 
have  objected  to  their  limited  success.     There  was  no 
open  war  party  as   yet,  though   many  considered   the 
treaty  (of  1778)  still  in  force,  which  bound  France  and 
the  United  States  to  offensive  as  well  as  defensive  al- 
liance.    The  country  was  in  a  position  to  drift  easily 
into  war  as  an  ally  of  France;  and  many  of  its  citizens 
were  certain  to  criticise  severely  any  act  of  their  own 
government  which  seemed  unfriendly  to  the  French  Re- 
public. 

2.  Washington  always  deliberated  slowly  and  calmly, 

28 


*793-]        Proclamation  of  Neutrality.  29 

though  he  was  immovable  when  he  had  decided.  He 
consulted  his  Cabinet,  and  by  their  unanimous  advice 
determined,  notwithstanding  the  inevitable  unpopularity 
of  the  act,  to  regard  the  former  treaty  as  nullified  by 
the  change  of  government  in  France,  and  to  issue  his 
Proclamation  of  Neutrality  between  the  French 
Republic  and  her  enemies.  The  proclamation  roused 
intense  anger.  For  the  first  time  the  extreme  Repub- 
licans, who  might  now  almost  be  called  the  French 
party,  assailed  the  President  personally.  He  was  ac- 
cused of  being  an  enemy  to  France  and  republican  in- 
stitutions, of  usurping  the  functions  of  Congress  in  the 
decision  and  announcement  of  peace  and  war,  and  of 
setting  at  naught  a  solemn  treaty,  to  whose  observance 
the  faith  of  the  country  was  pledged. 

3.  The  bitterness  of  the  pro-French  newspapers  was 
increased  by  the  arrival  of  Citizen  Genet,  who  had 
been  accredited  by  the  French  Republic  as  Minister  to 
the  United  States.  He  had  reached  Charleston,  S.  C., 
April  8th,  and,  misled  by  the  warmth  of  his  reception,  he 
entered  on  and  persisted  in  a  course  which  would  only 
have  been  pardonable  if  he  had  been  still  on  French 
soil.  He  undertook  to  commission  cruisers  from  Amer- 
ican ports,  which  captured  British  vessels  even  in  Amer- 
ican waters.  He  created  courts  for  the  trial  and  con- 
demnation of  such  prizes,  and  began  to  raise  money 
and  enlist  men  for  the  service  of  France.  The  British 
agent  complained  of  these  violations  of  neutrality,  and 
Genet  was  informed  by  Jefferson  that  they  must  cease. 
Two  of  his  American  recruits  were  arrested  and  com- 


30  American  Politics.  LT793- 

mitted  to  jail.  Against  this  Genet  remonstrated  in  of- 
fensive language,  and,  making  Philadelphia  his  head- 
quarters, persevered  in  breaking  the  law. 

4.  He  was   encouraged   by  the   so-called   Demo- 
cratic Clubs  which  had  been  formed  by  the  more  vio- 
lent Republicans,  in  imitation  of  the  Jacobin  clubs  of 
France.     They  had  adopted  the  wildest  follies  of  their 
French  prototypes.     They  had  changed  their  aristo- 
cratic title  of  Mr.  to  that  of  Citizen,  and  their  daughters 
were  married  under  the  name  of  Citess.     They  were 
even  scandalized  by  that  relic  of  European  aristocracy, 
the  spread  eagle  upon  public  papers.     To  Republicans 
of  this  type  the  character  and  past  services  of  Washing- 
ton were  no  bar  to  the  severest  denunciation  of  his  con- 
duct to  Genet  and  the  French  Republic. 

5.  Through  the  Summer  of  1793  the  insolence  of 
Genet  towards  the  President  and  Cabinet  became  still 
more    offensive,   and   his    subordinates   imitated    their 
chief.     The  French  consul  at  Boston,  with  a  body  of 
marines  from  a  French  war  vessel  in  the  harbor,  res- 
cued a  libeled  vessel  from  the  United  States  Marshal. 
An  American  privateer  under  French  colors  left  Phila- 
delphia in  flat  defiance  of  direct  orders  from  the  Fed- 
eral Government.     French  officers  in  Georgia  began  to 
organize  expeditions  against  the  American  possessions 
of  Spain,  with  which  country  France  was  now  at  war. 
Finally  Chief  Justice  Jay,  and  Senator  King,  of  New 
York,  declared  over  their  signatures  in  a   New  York 
newspaper  that  Genet  had  in  private  declared  his  in 
tention  to  appeal  from  the  Government  to  the  people. 


1/93-]  Hostility  to  England.  31 

To  the  astonishment  of  Genet,  v^  seems  not  to  have 
been  aware  of  the  extent  to  which  free  political  discus- 
sion may  harmlessly  be  carried,  this  announcement 
alienated  from  him  all  but  the  most  violent  of  his  former 
supporters.  His  popularity  was  gone.  The  American 
Government  asked  his  recall,  and  until  this  took  place 
in  the  following  winter  his  only  noteworthy  action  was 
his  declaration  that  Chief  Justice  Jay  and  Senator  King 
had  told  a  falsehood. 

6.  Congress  met  December  2d,  1793,  with  a  slight 
Hid  Congress,     Republican  majority  in  the  House, 

ist  Session.  where  F.  A.  Muhlenberg,  of  Penn- 
sylvania, a  Republican,  was  chosen  Speaker.  The 
doubtful  vote,  however,  was  still  so  large  that  there  was 
no  real  party  majority.  The  President's  Proclamation, 
and  his  treatment  of  Genet,  were  approved,  though  not 
warmly,  in  the  House,  where  there  was  increasing  Hos- 
tility to  England,  provoked  by  England's  systematic 
neglect  of  the  interests  and  feelings  of  the  United 
States. 

7.  England  had  never  accredited  a  Minister  Resi- 
dent to  the  United  States,  and  had  refused  to  carry  out 
those  articles  of  the  Treaty  of  1783  which  bound  her  to 
surrender  her  military  posts  on  United  States  soil,  and 
to  pay  for  slaves  carried  away  by  her  armies.     It  was 
firmly  believed  that  her  agents  had  interfered  to  pre- 
vent treaties  of  peace  with  the  savages  of  the  North- 
West,  and  had  incited  them  to  renewed  attacks  upon 
the  frontier  settlements.     An  unexpected  treaty  of  peace 
between  Portugal  and  Algiers,  which  had  let  loose  the 


32  American  Politics.  [X793« 

Algerine  pirates  for  a  warfare  upon  the  Atlantic  against 
unprotected  American  commerce,  was  attributed  to 
English  intervention.  The  impressment  of  American 
seamen,  under  color  of  their  resemblance  to  English- 
men, was  a  growing  grievance.  All  English  ships  of 
war  had  been  ordered,  on  the  8th  of  June,  1793,  to 
stop  vessels  bound  for  France  with  corn,  and  compel 
them  to  change  their  course  to  an  English  port.  This 
blow  at  American  commerce  with  France  had  been 
supplemented  by  a  further  order  of  November  6th, 
that  all  such  vessels  should  be  seized  and  sent  to  Great 
Britain  for  trial  by  English  courts.  Her  refusal  to 
evacuate  the  Western  posts  was  grounded  on  the  un- 
justifiable neglect  of  the  United  States  to  enforce  that 
article  of  the  Treaty  of  1783  which  provided  for  the 
payment  of  debts  due  to  British  subjects.  For  her 
further  offensive  measures  no  justification  was  offered, 
except  her  sovereign  will.  She  acted  apparently  under 
the  belief  that  the  United  States  were  the  concealed, 
but  soon  to  be  the  avowed,  ally  of  her  enemy,  and  thus 
she  contributed  in  no  small  degree  to  swell  the  current 
of  anti-English  feeling. 

8.  The  retaliating  orders  and  decrees  of  Great  Brit- 
ain and  the  French  Republic  had  already  injured  Amer- 
ican commerce.  In  an  Official  Report  of  December 
1 6th  Jefferson  advised  friendly  arrangements  for  their 
cessation,  if  possible,  and,  in  default  of  these,  active  re- 
taliation upon  the  offending  nation.  As  England  was 
/nore  likely  to  be  the  offender,  the  Republicans  promptly 
adopted  the  suggestion,  and,  January  4th,  1794,  Madi- 


1 794.]  Jay's  Nomination.  33 

son  introduced  resolutions  imposing  prohibitory  duties 
upon  English  goods.  They  were  debated,  at  intervals, 
for  two  months,  but  finally  failed. 

9.  The  Debates  of  this  Session  were  mainly  upon 
commercial  matters.     The  Federalists  wished  to  form 
a  navy,  and  to  maintain  neutrality  between   England 
and  France,  which  was  all  that   England's  course  al- 
lowed them  to  ask.     The  Republican  policy  was  a  mixt- 
ure of  two  opposites.     It  called  for  a  prohibition  of 
trade  with  England,  or,  at  the  least,  for  discriminating 
duties  against   English  imports,  and  yet  opposed  any 
naval  preparation  for  the  war  to  which  such  a  policy 
must  have  led.     Parties  were  so  evenly  divided,  and 
the  doubtful  vote  changed  sides  so  frequently  that  in 
the  middle  of  April,  1794,  no  decided  result  had  been 
reached. 

10.  An  unlooked  for  step  was  taken  by  the   Presi- 
dent, April  1 6th.     He  nominated  Chief  Justice  Jay 
to  be  Envoy   Extraordinary  to  England,  for  the  pur- 
pose of  preserving  peace  by  a  new  treaty.     The  Senate, 
where  the  Federalists  had  a  small  majority,  confirmed 
the  nomination.     The   Republicans  of  the  House,  on 
the  1 8th,  endeavored  to  baulk  the  mission  in  advance 
by  a  resolution  entirely  prohibiting  trade  with  England. 
The  Senate  rejected  the  resolution,  and  Jay  sailed  for 
England. 

11.  Party  Contests    were   numerous   throughout 
the  Session.     The  Federalists  succeeded  in  passing  a 
system  of  indirect  taxation  to  provide  for  the  increased 
expenses  of  the  Government,  the  Republicans  voting 

3 


34  American  Politics.  [!794« 

for  direct  taxes.  A  Federalist  bill  to  prevent  such 
practices  as  Genet's  was  opposed  by  the  Republicans, 
and  bitterly  denounced  by  the  Democratic  clubs,  but 
was  passed  with  some  modifications.  Some  of  the  Re- 
publicans again  attempted,  and  again  without  success, 
to  pass  resolutions  censuring  Hamilton's  management 
of  the  Treasury.  The  Republicans  had  been  alarmed 
by  a  decision  of  the  Supreme  Court  that  an  action 
brought  by  a  citizen  of  the  United  States  would  lie 
against  a  State,  just  as  against  any  other  corporation. 
At  this  Session,  therefore,  an  Amendment  was  adopted, 
securing  States  against  suit  in  United  States  Courts. 
It  was  afterwards  ratified  by  the  necessary  number  of 
States,  and  became  the  Xlth  Amendment,  which 
has  enabled  so  many  States  to  repudiate  debt  with  im- 
punity. Congress  adjourned  June  gth,  1794.  Genet's 
actions  had  previously  been  disavowed  by  a  new  Rev- 
olutionary Government  in  France,  and  Fauchet  sent  in 
his  stead. 

12.  Before  Congress  re-assembled  the  so-called 
Whiskey  Insurrection  against  the  enforcement  of 
the  Excise  Law  had  been  suppressed.  It  had  no  po- 
litical results,  except  as  it  strengthened  Federalism,  by 
strengthening  popular  sympathy  with  the  Administra- 
tion. It  was  also  one  cause  of  the  downfall  of  the 
Democratic  clubs,  which  Washington  had  publicly  and 
officially,  though  perhaps  mistakenly,  declared  to  be 
the  instigators  of  the  Insurrection.  They  thus  lost  pop- 
ularity, and  the  overthrow  of  Robespierre  and  the 
French  Jacobin  clubs  was  soon  followed  by  the  igno- 
minious death  of  their  American  imitations. 


I79S-]        Jay's  Treaty  with  England.  35 

13.  Congress  met  November  3d,  1794.     In  January, 
Hid  Congress,     1795,  Hamilton  felt  compelled  to 

2d  Session.  leave  the  Cabinet,  and  resume  the 
practice  of  law  in  New  York.  His  last  official  act 
was  the  arrangement  of  a  plan  of  Internal  Taxation, 
which  was  offered  to  Congress,  and  furnished  material 
for  debate  throughout  the  Session.  It  was  adopted 
against  the  opposition  of  most  of  the  Republicans. 
Congress  adjourned  March  3d,  1795. 

14.  Jay  had  concluded  a  Treaty  with  England, 
which  did  not  satisfy  him,  but  was  the  best  that  he 
could  procure.     It  reached  America  March  7th,  and 
was  sent  to  the  Senate  in  Special  Session  June  8th.     It 
was  ratified  by  the  necessary  two-thirds  majority,  and 
only  awaited  the  signature  of  the  President  to  become 
law.     Popular  curiosity  was  stimulated  by  the  secrecy 
of  the  debates.     When,  on  the  29th  of  June,  a  Senator 
in  violation  of  his  word  gave  a  partial  copy  of  Jay's 
Treaty  for  publication,  and  it  was   found  that  by  its 
terms  England  was  still  at  liberty  to  impress  American 
seamen,  to  harass  American  commerce,  and  to  shut  it 
out  from  the  West  India  trade,  the  wrath  of  the  Re- 
publicans  rose   to    fever  heat,  and    Federalists   could 
hardly  contrive  an  apology  for  a  surrender  with  which 
they  also  were  generally  dissatisfied.     In  all  the  large 
cities  public  meetings  condemned  the  treaty,  and  called 
upon  the  President  to  withhold  his  signature. 

15.  But  The  President  felt  that  a  treaty  of  some 
kind  was  necessary,  and  that  no  better  one  could  then 
be  obtained.     He  therefore  signed  it.     Hitherto  criti- 


36  American  Politics.  [J795 

cisms  on  Washington's  policy  had  not  been  uncommon, 
but  his  action  in  signing  Jay's  Treaty  brought  out  as- 
persions upon  his  private  character,  which  were  carried 
so  far  that  he  declared  "he  would  rather  be  in  his 
grave  than  in  the  Presidency."  He  was  charged  by 
the  extreme  Republicans  with  usurpation,  treason  to 
his  country,  and  hostility  to  her  interests.  The  con- 
tinued sufferings  of  American  prisoners  in  Algiers  were 
ascribed  to  his  criminal  indifference.  He  was  accused 
of  having  shown  incapacity  during  the  Revolution, 
and  of  having  embezzled  the  public  funds  while  Presi- 
dent. He  was  threatened  with  impeachment,  with 
assassination.  Even  the  honored  epithet  so  long  given 
to  him  was  burlesqued,  and  Washington  was  for  a  time 
known  to  the  Republicans  as  "The  Step-Father  of  his 
Country."  And  yet,  within  a  year,  his  unyielding 
common  sense  was  justified  by  a  revival  of  trade  which 
gained  friends  for  Jay's  Treaty,  even  among  its  formerly 
bitter  opponents. 

1 6.  Congress  met  December  yth,  1795,  with  a  small 
IVth  Congress,  Federalist  majority  in  the  Senate, 

ist  Session.  and  a  Republican  majority  in  the 
House,  though  even  there  the  Federalists  succeeded  in 
choosing  Jonathan  Dayton,  of  New  Jersey,  Speaker. 
The  Senate,  in  reply  to  the  President's  Message,  echoed 
his  words,  but  the  Republican  majority  in  the  House, 
in  order  to  censure  the  President  indirectly,  voted  down 
the  first  sentence  of  their  committee's  draft  of  a  reply, 
including  an  expression  of  "their  confidence  in  the 
President,  and  their  approval  of  his  course." 


1796-]  Debates  on  Jays  Treaty.  37 

17.  March  ist,  1796,  the  President  sent  to  Congress 
a  copy  of  his  proclamation,  announcing  to  the  people 
that  the  treaty  with  England,  having  been  ratified  by 
the  Senate  and  signed  by  the  President,  had  become 
law.     In  the  House  this  caused  dissatisfaction,  and. 
against  the  wishes  of  some  of  the  moderate  Republic- 
ans, a  resolution  was  passed,  March  2d,  calling  upon 
the  President  to  send  to  the  House  all  papers  relating 
to  Jay's  Treaty.      The    President   refused  to   do  so, 
giving  as  his  reason  that  the  House  was  not  a  part  of 
the  treaty-making  power  of  the  Government.      The 
House   retorted   by   another   resolution   declaring  its 
right  to  decide  on  the  necessity  of  any  treaty  by  which 
public  money  was  to  be  expended. 

1 8.  From  the  Federalist  side  of  the  House  a  resolu- 
tion was  then  offered,  declaring  that  provision  ought 
to  be  made  by  law  for  carrying  the  treaty  into  effect. 
The    Debate  upon  this  resolution,  in   which   Fisher 
Ames,   of   Massachusetts,  led  the    Federalists,  lasted 
until  April  2Qth.      By  that  time  public  opinion  had 
pronounced  in  favor  of  the  treaty  too  emphatically  to 
be  disregarded  just  before  a  Presidential  election.     The 
Republican   majority  yielded  and  the  resolution  was 
passed.     The  beginning  and  the  end  of  the  Session 
were  taken  up  by  debates  upon  the  revenue,  in  which 
an  increase  of  duties  upon  imports  was  urged  by  the 
Federalists,  but  successfully  opposed  by  the  Republic- 
ans.    Congress  adjourned  June  ist,   1796.      On  that 
day  Tennessee,  formerly  a  part  of  North  Carolina, 
became  a  State  of  the  Union. 


38  American  Politics. 

19.  During  the  Summer  of  1796  preparations  were 
begun,  and  electors  were  nominated  for  the  Presiden- 
tial election  in    November.      Washington's    hold  was 
stronger  upon  the  people  than  upon  the  politicians, 
and  he  was  importuned  to  accept  a  third  term  of  office. 
Electors  nominated  by  both  parties  were  called  upon 
to  promise  that,  if  elected,  their  first  votes  should  be 
given  for  Washington.     His  decision  to  retire  to  private 
life  could  not  be  altered,  but  he  decided  to  publish  it 
in  a  form  which  should  always  remain  as  his  answer  to 
the  attacks  upon  him,  which  had  been  made,  to  use 
his  own  words,  "  in  terms  so  exaggerated  and  indecent 
as  could  scarcely  be  applied  to  a  Nero,  a  notorious 
defaulter,  or  even  to  a  common  pickpocket." 

20.  Washington's  Farewell  Address  to  the 
American  people  is  dated  September  lyth,  1796.     It 
consists  of  a  modest  estimate  of  his  own  services  to 
the  new  Government,  a  congratulation   that  the  cir- 
cumstances which   gave  a  temporary  value  to  those 
services  were  past,  an  appeal  to  the  people  to  preserve 
intact  the  unity  of  the  Government,  to  put  down  party 
spirit,  and  to    make   religion,  education,  and    public 
good    faith    the    basis   of    government,   and,   lastly,   a 
needed  warning  against  the  admission  of  any  foreign 
influence  upon  American  councils.     It  can  hardly  be 
read  without    renewing    the    conviction    that    George 
Washington  was  an  unconscious  but  sincere  Federalist, 
though  hardly  a   fair  critic  of  party  spirit,  a  modest 
Christian,  a  devoted  lover  of  country,  and  a  great,  un- 
selfish man. 


1796-]  Presidential  Election.  39 

21.  The  Farewell  Address  was  the  preliminary  to 
the  first  contested  Presidential  Election.  The 
Constitution  had  fairly  shown  its  merits.  Its  continued 
existence  was  assured,  and  there  was  no  longer  any 
necessity  for  keeping  the  political  peace  between  the 
two  great  parties.  No  formal  nominations  were  made, 
but  it  was  understood  that  the  Republican  electors 
would  cast  their  votes  for  Thomas  Jefferson,  of  Vir- 
ginia, and  Aaron  Burr,  of  New  York,  and  the  Federal- 
ist electors  for  John  Adams,  of  Massachusetts,  and 
Thomas  Pinckney,  of  Maryland.  Hamilton's  ardent 
political  zeal  had  made  so  many  enemies  that  he  was 
not  considered  a  suitable  candidate.  The  Federalists 
claimed  support  as  the  authors  of  the  Government, 
the  friends  of  neutrality,  peace,  and  prosperity,  and 
the  direct  inheritors  of  Washington's  policy.  The 
Republicans  claimed  to  be  the  friends  of  liberty  and 
the  rights  of  man,  the  advocates  of  economy  and  of 
the  rights  of  the  States,  and  refused  to  recognize  their 
opponents  as  the  inheritors  of  any  policy  but  that  of 
England.  The  Presidential  election  took  place  in 
November,  1796,*  and  the  French  Minister  undertook 
to  influence  it  by  an  extraordinary  "Address  to  the 
American  People,"  in  which  he  hinted  that  his  Govern- 
ment would  cease  intercourse  with  the  United  States 
unless  the  Republicans  were  successful.  Federalist 
electors  were  chosen  in  most  of  the  Northern  States, 
while  the  Southern  States,  with  the  exception  of  Mary- 

1  Until  about  1824-1828  electors  were  generally  chosen,  not  directly  by  tha 
>cople,  but  by  the  Legislatures  of  the  various  States. 


40  American  Politics.  [J797 

land,  generally  chose  Republicans.     The  result  was  a 
slight  Federalist  majority. 

22.  Congress  met  December  5th,  1796,  but  its  pro- 
IVth  Congress,     ceedings   gave   little  opportunity 

2d  Session.  for  party  contest.  In  the  House 
an  attempt  was  made  to  renew  the  last  year's  expres 
sion  of  want  of  confidence  in  Washington,  but  it  was 
defeated.  In  February,  1797,  the  electoral  votes  were 
counted,  and  were  found  to  be,  for  John  Adams  71,  for 
Thomas  Jefferson  68,  for  Thomas  Pinckney  59,  for 
Aaron  Burr  30,  and  the  rest  scattering.1  John  Adams 
was  therefore  declared  to  be  elected  President,  and 
Thomas  Jefferson  Vice-president.  The  Executive 
was  thus  Federalist,  with  a  possibility  of  a  Republican 
succession,  in  case  of  the  death,  disability,  or  impeach- 
ment and  removal  of  the  President.  It  was  plain  that 
a  mode  of  election  which  offered  so  much  temptation 
to  the  cupidity  of  party  or  the  caprice  of  fortune  was 
faulty,  and  could  not  endure.  A  further  experience  of 
its  danger,  however,  was  needed  to  enforce  its  amend- 
ment. Congress  adjourned  March  3d,  1797.  March 
4th  Adams  and  Jefferson  were  sworn  into  office. 

1  Two  electors  obstinately  voted  for  George  Washington. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

THIRD  ADMINISTRATION,   1797-180!. 

John  Adams,  President.  Thomas  Jefferson,  Vice-President. 

Vth  and  Vlth  Congresses. 

i.  THE  beginning  of  Adams's  Administration  was 
marked  by  a  more  open  manifestation  of  bad  feeling  by 
the  French  Republic,  which  was  ascribed  by  the 
Federalists  to  the  anger  of  the  French  Directory  on 
account  of  the  Republican  defeat,  and  by  the  Repub- 
licans to  the  anxiety  of  two  successive  Federalist  Ad- 
ministrations to  be  in  close  dependence  upon  England. 
In  1797,  Monroe,  an  ardent  Republican,  who  had  been 
Minister  to  France,  was  recalled,  and  C.  C.  Pinckney 
was  sent  in  his  place.  At  Monroe's  departure  from 
Paris  the  French  Directory  announced,  in  studied  terms 
of  affection  for  the  American  people  and  of  contempt 
for  the  American  Government,  their  intention  to  re- 
ceive no  more  American  Ministers  until  their  grievances 
were  redressed.  Prominent  among  these  grievances 
was  Jay's  Treaty.  At  the  same  time  Pinckney  was  or- 
dered to  quit  the  territory  of  France  at  once. 


42  American  Politics. 

2.  Upon  receipt  of  this  news  the  President  hastily 
Vth    Congress,     called  an  Extra  Session  of  Con- 
Extra  Session,     gress  for  the  i5th  of  May.     Both 
branches  had  Federalist  majorities,  and  Jonathan  Day- 
ton, of  New  Jersey,  was  chosen  Speaker  of  the  House. 
The  main  business  of  the  Session  was  to  listen  to  an 
Address  of  the  President  in  which  he  announced 
his  intention  to  send  three  envoys  to  France,  as  a  last 
effort  to  obtain  peace.     Many  of  the  Republicans  con- 
sidered the  whole  trouble  to  be  the  result  of  Federalist 
intrigues,  but  a  majority  of  both  Houses  approved  the 
President's   course.      Congress  adjourned   July   loth, 
1797,  and  the  envoys  soon  after  departed  for  France. 
Through  the  Summer  of  1797  parties  remained  as  be- 
fore, each  accusing  the  other,  perhaps  with  equal  jus- 
tice, of  a  willingness  to  sacrifice  the  interests  of  Amer- 
ica to  those  of  a  foreign  country.     A  foreign  traveler 
about  this  time  said  that  there  seemed  to  be  in  Amer- 
ica many  English,  many  French,  but  very  few  Ameri- 
cans. 

3.  The  envoys  to   France,  after  patiently  enduring 
for  months  a  treatment  unworthy  the  embassadors  of  a 
free   people,  including  a  demand   for  a  bribe  to   the 
French  Directory,  and  a  loan  to  the  French  Republic, 
as  preliminaries  to  any  negotiation,  received   peremp- 
tory orders  to  quit   France,  and  returned  with  empty 
hands.    Their  mission  is  frequently  called  The  X.Y.Z. 
Mission,  from  the  initials  used  by  the  agents  who  de- 
manded the  bribes.     In  the  mean  time  French  attacks 
on   American   commerce,   which    had    hitherto    been 


1798.]  The  X.  Y.Z.  Mission.  43 

cloaked  to  some  extent  by  a  pretense  of  respect  for  in- 
ternational law,  had  now  become  an  open  warfare. 
American  shipping  papers  were  a  sufficient  warrant  for 
the  capture  and  condemnation  of  the  vessels  which  car- 
ried them. 

4.  Congress  met  November  i3th,  1797.    At  first  the 
Vth   Congress,     Republican  disposition  to  tolerate 

ist  Session.  almost  any  treatment  from  France 
was  continued,  and  early  in  1798  the  House  voted  down 
a  proposition  to  arm  American  vessels.  April  8th  the 
Senate  voted  to  publish  the  X.Y.Z.  letters,  and  the  dis- 
patches of  the  envoys.  To  England  they  seemed  of 
such  importance  that  they  were  sent  everywhere  in 
Europe  to  excite  feeling  against  France.  In  America 
one  burst  of  indignation  from  the  Federalists  converted 
many  of  the  Republicans,  and  silenced  the  rest. 
"  Millions  for  defense :  not  one  cent  for  tribute  "  be- 
came a  rallying  cry,  in  and  out  of  Congress. 

5.  Under  the  influence  of  the  War  Spirit  a  number 
of  acts  were  passed  to  place  the  nation  in  readiness  for 
hostilities.     A  provisional  army  was  ordered,  of  which 
Washington    was    commissioned    Lieutenant-General. 
American  men-of-war  were  ordered  to  seize  any  French 
vessels  which  should  commit  depredations  on  Ameri- 
can   commerce.     Intercourse    with    France    was    sus- 
pended.    The  treaties  with  France  were  declared  no 
longer  binding  upon  the  United  States,  and  authority 
was  given  to  the  President  to  issue  letters  of  marque 
and  reprisal.     So   far,  the  acts  passed  were   only  the 
natural  evidences  of  a  nation's  outraged  dignity.     But 


44  American  Politics. 

the  Federalists,  intoxicated  by  the  possession  of  unre- 
strained power,  and  hurried  on  by  an  instinctive  pas- 
sion for  strong  government,  proceeded  to  force  through 
two  acts  which  were  well  calculated  to  convince  the 
popular  mind  of  their  disregard  for  the  Constitution. 
They  seem,  indeed,  to  have  been  in  the  end  the  death 
warrant  of  the  Federal  party. 

6.  June  25th  the  so-called  Alien  Law  was  passed. 
It  authorized  the  President  to  order  any  alien  whom  he 
should  judge  to  be  dangerous  to  the  peace  and  liber- 
ties of  America  to  depart  from  the  United  States,  and 
made  provision  for  the  fining  and  imprisonment  of  such 
aliens  as  should  refuse  to  obey  the  President's  order. 
July  1 4th   the  so-called  Sedition  Law  was  passed. 
It  imposed  a  heavy  fine  and  imprisonment  upon  such 
as  should  combine  or  conspire  together  to  oppose  any 
measure  of  Government,  and  upon  such  as  should  ut- 
ter any  false,  scandalous,  or  malicious  writing  against 
the  Government,  Congress,  or  President  of  the  United 
States.     This  act  was  to  remain  in  force  until  March 
3d,  1801.     Congress  adjourned  July  i6th,  1798. 

7.  These  two  tremendous  statutes  were  such  a  stretch 
of  power  as  had  not  been  ventured  upon  since  the 
Revolution.     Without  them,  the  open  attempts  of  the 
French  Directory  to  dictate  a  government  and  policy  to 
the  United  States,  their  discriminating  kindness  to  the 
Republican  member  of  the  mission  to  France,  and  the 
patriotic  and  successful  stand  taken  by  the  Federalist 
Administration,  would  almost  have   insured  the    gov- 
ernment to  the  Federal  party  for  the  future      It  was 


1 798.]          Alien  and  Sedition  Laws.  45 

evident  that  the  Republicans  believed  that  these  two 
statutes  were  aimed  at  them  as  a  party,  and  were  un- 
constitutional and  in  violation  of  the  1st  Amendment, 
which  prohibited  Congress  from  passing  any  law  to 
abridge  freedom  of  speech  or  of  the  press.  And  it 
should  have  been  evident  to  the  Federalist  leaders  that, 
when  the  war  feeling  should  subside,  popular  opinion 
would  incline  to  the  Republican  view,  unless  the  stat- 
utes were  repealed  as  soon  as  the  necessity  for  them 
was  past. 

8.  It  will  be  seen  that,  during  the  next  year,  France 
denied  any  knowledge  of  the  agents  who  had  demanded 
bribes,  and  hastened  to  conclude  a  peace.  But,  though 
preparations  for  war  were  then  at  an  end,  the  Federal- 
ists persisted  in  enforcing  prosecutions  under  the  Alien 
and  Sedition  Laws,  even  in  the  doubtful  States,  New 
York,  Pennsylvania,  and  New  Jersey.  Though  this 
excited  public  resentment,  it  came  too  late  to  influence 
the  election  for  members  of  the  Vlth  Congress,  in 
which  the  Federalists,  by  the  help  of  the  war  feeling, 
were  completely  successful.  Seeing  no  hope  of  pres- 
ent success  in  Congress,  the  Republican  leaders  deter- 
mined, if  possible,  to  entrench  themselves  in  the  State 
Legislatures,  and,  through  them,  to  protest  against 
measures  which  they  were  unable  to  resist.  To  this  end 
a  series  of  resolutions,  drawn  up  by  Jefferson,  was 
adopted  by  the  Legislature  of  Kentucky,  and  a  similar 
series,  drawn  up  by  Madison,  was  adopted  by  the  Leg- 
islature of  Virginia.  These  are  known  as  the  Ken- 
tucky, and  the  Virginia,  Resolutions  of  1798. 


46  American  Politics.  [1798. 

They  are  interesting  as  the  first  authorized  pioclama- 
tion  of  the  Strict  Constructionist  party,  though  allow- 
ance must  be  made  for  the  excited  state  of  political  feel- 
ing at  the  time  of  their  passage. 

9.  The  Virginia  Resolutions  declared  that  the 
Constitution  was  a  compact  by  which  the  States  had 
surrendered  only  a  limited  portion  of  their  powers ;  that 
whenever  the  Federal  Government  undertook  to  step 
over  the  boundary  of  its  delegated  authority  it  was  the 
right  and  the  duty  of  the  States  to  interpose,  and  maintain 
the  rights  which  they  had  reserved  to  themselves;   that 
the  Alien  and  Sedition  Laws  were  an  usurpation  by  the 
Federal  Government  of  powers  not  granted  to  it,  since 
the  abridgment  of  liberty  of  speech  or  of  the  press  had 
been  expressly  forbidden  by  the  Constitution ;  that  the 
State  of  Virginia  solemnly  declared  those  laws  to  be 
unconstitutional,  and  appealed  to  the  other  States  to 
join  in  that  declaration ;  and  that  her  Governor  should 
be  instructed  to  transmit  copies  of  these  resolutions  to 
the    Governors    of   other    States,    to    be    laid   before 
their  Legislatures.     The  response  from  other  States  was 
unfavorable,  and  Virginia  repeated  her  resolutions  the 
next  year,  1799. 

10.  The  Kentucky  Resolutions  were  to  the  same 
general  effect  as  those  of  Virginia,  but  with  the  addi- 
tional declaration  that  the  States  were  one  party  to  the 
compact,  and  the  Federal  Government  was  the  other, 
and  that  each  party  must  be  the  judge  of  infractions  of 
the  agreement,  and  of  the  mode  and  measure  of  re- 
dress.    These  resolutions  having  received  as  little  at* 


1798.]  Resolutions  of  1798.  47 

tention  from  other  States  as  those  of  Virginia,  Ken- 
tucky went  further  the  next  year  (1799),  and  took  the 
step  which  separates  party  opposition  from  treason  by 
a  slight  alteration  in  her  resolutions,  to  the  effect  that 
a  State  might  rightfully  nullify  and  declare  void  any  Act 
of  Congress  which  it  might  consider  unconstitutional. 
These  are  the  Kentucky  Resolutions  of  1799, 
which  exceeded  Jefferson's  interest,1  and  are  not  Strict 
Constructionist  doctrine,  though  it  will  be  seen  that 
they  were  used  by  the  South  as  a  pretended  precedent 
for  Nullification  in  1832,  and  for  Secession  in  1860. 

ii.  Congress  met  December  3d,  1798,  with  a  con- 
Vth  Congress,  tinued  Federalist  majority.  War 

2d  Session.  against  France  had  not  been 
formally  declared,  but  a  species  of  warfare  existed 
upon  the  ocean,  in  which  American  privateers,  armed 
merchantmen,  and  even  ships  of  war  engaged  in  con- 
flicts with  French  vessels.  Both  parties  agreed  in 
voting  an  increase  of  the  navy,  but  an  increase  of 
the  army  was  earnestly  opposed  by  the  Republicans, 
who  believed  that  this  and  similar  warlike  measures 
were  only  urged  by  the  Federalists  from  a  desire 
for  party  aggrandizement  by  providing  commissions 
for  their  party  leaders.  The  President  seems  to 
have  become  at  least  a  partial  convert  to  this  view, 
for  in  February,  1799,  without  consulting  his  Cabinet, 
and  in  spite  of  his  expressed  determination  to  send  no 
more  ministers  to  France  until  assured  of  a  friendly  re- 
ception, he  suddenly  appointed  three  envoys  to  that 

1  Letters,  Vol.  III.  p.  429,  (Ed.  1829). 


48  American  Politics.  [*799 

country.  Two  of  the  Cabinet  protested  against  this 
action  of  the  President.  Their  protest  was  sustained  by 
leading  Federalists  throughout  the  country,  and  the 
President  began  to  lose,  to  some  degree,  the  support  of 
the  party  which  had  elected  him.  Congress  adjourned 
March  3d,  1799. 

12.  The  difficulties  of  the  Federalists  were  now  in- 
creased by  an  evident  division  between  Hamilton,  who 
was  the  real  leader  of  the  party,  and  Adams,  who  was 
its  nominal  head.     No  open  quarrel  had  as  yet  taken 
place.      But  when   the  envoys   to   France,  who  had 
waited  until  November  for  assurances  of  a  friendly  re- 
ception, were  ordered  to  depart  by  the  President,  again 
without  consulting  his  Cabinet,  his  apparent  eagerness 
for  peace  and  distrust  of  Hamilton  widened  the  breach 
between  them.     The  envoys  were  successful  in  arrang- 
ing a  treaty  with  Napoleon  Bonaparte,  who  was  then 
at  the  head  of  the  French  Directory. 

13.  Congress  met  December  2d,  1799,  with  a  strong- 
Vlth  Congress,     er  Federalist  majority.     Theodore 

ist  Session.  Sedgwick,  of  Massachusetts,  a 
Federalist,  was  chosen  Speaker  of  the  House.  There 
was  little  party  contest  at  this  Session.  The  Federalist 
majority  had  been  chosen  during  the  war  fever,  im- 
mediately after  the  ignominious  return  of  the  envoys  to 
France,  and  neither  represented  nor  felt  the  undercur- 
rent of  irritation  which  the  continued  enforcement  of 
The  Alien  and  Sedition  Laws  was  increasing.  The 
Republican  minority  were  kept  in  check,  through  their 
leaders,  by  Jefferson,  who  preferred  to  allow  the  popular 


l8oo.]  Presidential  Election.  49 

excitement  to  work  until  the  Presidential  election  of 
1800.  During  this  Session  caucuses  of  Members  of 
Congress  nominated  Presidential  candidates.1  The 
Federalist  candidates  were  John  Adams,  of  Massachu- 
setts, and  C.  C.  Pinckney,  of  South  Carolina,  and  the 
Republican  candidates  were  Thomas  Jefferson,  of  Vir- 
ginia, and  Aaron  Burr,  of  New  York.  Congress  ad 
journed  May  i/j.th,  1800. 

14.  The  first  important  election  took  place  in  New 
York,  April  28th,  and  resulted  in  the  choice  of  a  Re- 
publican  Legislature,   by  whom  electors   were  to   be 
chosen.     At  this  first  token  of  Federalist  Defeat  the 
slumbering  animosities  of  the  party  broke  forth.     The 
President  dismissed  a  part  of  his  Cabinet,  consisting  of 
Hamilton's  friends,  whom  he  called  a  "  British  faction." 
Hamilton  printed  a  severe  attack  upon  the  President, 
and   endeavored   to   make   arrangements    for    giving 
Pinckney   a  majority  of  Federalist    electors, "  that    he 
might  be  chosen  President,  and  Adams  Vice- President. 
The  Presidential  Election  took  place  in  November, 
1800.     In  spite  of  Federalist  divisions  the  result  was 
doubtful  until  the  vote  of  South  Carolina  turned  the 
scale,  and  gave  the  Republican  electors  a  majority. 

15.  Congress  met  in  the  new  Federal  city  of  Wash- 
Vlth   Congress,     ington,    November     lyth,    1800 

2d  Session.  The  Session  was  mainly  occupied 
by  The  Undecided  Presidential  Election,  caused 
by  the  defective  provisions  of  the  Constitution.  In 
February,  1801,  the  electoral  votes  were  counted,  and 

1  Nominating  Conventions  were  not  used  until  1832. 


50  American  Politics.  [1801 

were  found  to  be,  for  Jefferson  73,  for  Burr  73,  for 
Adams  65,  for  Pinckney  64,  and  for  John  Jay  i. 
There  was  no  name  highest  on  the  list.  Consequently 
there  was  no  choice,  and  an  election  was  to  be  made 
by  the  House  of  Representatives  between  the  two 
highest  candidates,  each  State  having  one  vote.  It  is 
impossible  to  say  why  the  Republican  leaders,  or 
electors,  did  not  foresee  this  mischance.  The  differ- 
ence of  one  vote  between  Adams  and  Pinckney  would 
seem  to  show  that  at  least  one  Federalist  elector  was 
more  acute,  for  South  Carolina's  vote  would  have 
seated  both  the  Federalist  candidates  without  trouble. 

1 6.  The  House  was  Federalist,  but  was  restricted  to 
a  choice  between  two  Republicans.  Of  the  two,  many 
Federalists  preferred  Burr,  partly  to  keep  the  Presi- 
dency from  their  most  dangerous  enemy,  Jefferson,  and 
partly  to  baulk  the  evident  intention  of  the  Repub- 
licans. The  balloting  began  February  nth.  Eight 
States  voted  for  Jefferson,  six  for  Burr,  and  two  were 
without  votes  because  of  equal  division  among  their 
members.  There  being  sixteen  States  there  was  even 
yet  No  Election.  Balloting  continued  with  the  same 
result  for  six  days,  and  the  Federalist  majority  was 
charged  with  a  design  to  prolong  the  balloting  in  this 
way  until  March  4th,  the  day  of  inauguration,  and  then 
to  make  Chief  Justice  Jay  provisional  President.  The 
charge  was  denied  by  the  Federalists.  Fortunately  the 
trouble  came  to  an  end  February  lyth,  when  ten  States 
.voted  for  Jefferson,  four  for  Burr,  and  two  blank. 
Jefferson  was  then  declared  elected  President,  and 


i8oi.]  Election  by  the  House.  51 

Burr  Vice- President.  Congress  adjourned  March  3d, 
1 80 1,  and  March  4th  Jefferson  and  Burr  were  sworn 
into  office. 


CHAPTER  V. 

FOURTH  ADMINISTRATION,   1801-1805. 

Thomas  Jefferson,  President.  Aaron  Burr,  Vice-President. 

Vllth  and  VHIth  Congresses. 

i.  Jefferson's  Election  completed  the  first  great 
political  revolution  in  the  United  States  since  1787, 
except  that  the  Federalists  still  had  control  of  the  Ju- 
diciary. The  new  President's  first  Inaugural  Message 
announced  the  future  policy  of  the  Republican  party 
to  be  the  careful  fostering  of  the  State  governments,  the 
restriction  of  the  powers  of  the  Federal  Government  to 
their  lowest  constitutional  limit,  the  immediate  pay- 
ment of  the  public  debt,  and  the  reduction  of  the  army, 
the  navy,  the  taxes,  and  the  duties  on  imports,  to  the 
lowest  available  point.  The  Republicans  were  op- 
posed to  any  currency  but  gold  and  silver,  and  some 
of  their  leaders  even  desired  an  Amendment  to  the 
Constitution  denying  to  the  Federal  Government  the 
power  of  borrowing  money,  believing  that  a  yearly 
direct  tax  for  the  current  expenses  of  the  Government 
would  compel  the  people  to  decide  more  carefully  on 
52 


I  So  I .]  State  of  Parties.  5  3 

questions  of  peace,  war,  and  finance,  Upon  most  of 
the  articles  of  Republican  belief,  the  Federalists 
were  more  willing  to  give  latitude  and  power  to  the 
Federal  Government.  But  the  hatred  of  the  parties 
for  each  other  was  a  little  abated,  though  the  Federal- 
ists still  called  their  opponents  Democrats  and  Jacobins, 
while  the  Republicans  retorted  with  the  name  of  "  Black- 
Cockade  Federalist,"  in  allusion  to  the  party  badge 
worn  by  them  in  the  time  of  the  war  fever  of  1798. 

2.  The  Anticipations  of  the  Federalists  for  the 
future  of  the  country  under  Republican  rule  were  nat- 
urally gloomy.     The  Federal  party  probably  contained 
the  larger  portion  of  the  intellect,  wealth,  and  culture 
of  the  country,  and,  in  their  honest  opinion,  the  Gov- 
ernment was  now  in  bad  hands.     The  President  was 
"  an  atheist  in  religion,  and  a  fanatic  in  politics,"  and 
the  Vice-President  was  only  more  tolerable  because  less 
known.     The  party  which  supported  them  was  com- 
posed  of   disorganizers,  Jacobins,  and   revolutionists. 
The  President  felt  it  to  be  his  duty  to  act  so  moder- 
ately as  to  give   Federalist   apprehensions   no  darker 
color,  although  he  was  determined  to  undo,  so  far  as 
possible,  the  centralizing  measures  of  the  last  Adminis- 
tration.    With  this  view  he  took  the  first  opportunity, 
after  entering  office,  to  issue  Executive  pardons  to  those 
who  were   imprisoned  under  the  Alien  and  Sedition 
Laws. 

3.  A  troublesome  problem  occupied  the  summer  of 
1 80 1.     The  Republicans  were  clamorous  for  Offices, 
and  none  were  vacant.     They  therefore  demanded  that 


54  American  Politics.  [i8oi. 

Federalist  office-holders  should  be  removed  to  make 
room  for  Republican  successors.  The  President  fol- 
lowed the  course  he  had  previously  marked  out,  re- 
moving no  person  merely  for  holding  Federalist  opin- 
ions, but  removing  all  office-holders  who  had  used  their 
official  power  for  party  purposes,  or  who  had  been  ap- 
pointed by  President  Adams  after  the  result  of  the  last 
election  had  become  known.  The  supply  of  offices 
thus  placed  at  his  disposal  satisfied  the  most  pressing 
demands,  and  for  the  future  he  trusted  to  the  natural 
decrease  in  the  ranks  of  the  office-holders,  of  whom, 
however,  he  complained  that  "  few  died,  and  none  re- 
signed." 

4.  Congress  met  December  yth,  1801,  with  a  small 
Vllth  Congress,     Republican     majority    in    both 

ist  Session.  branches.  In  the  House  Na- 
thaniel Macon,  of  North  Carolina,  a  Republican,  was 
chosen  Speaker.  Instead  of  the  President's  address  in 
person  to  both  Houses  of  Congress,  which  had  hitherto 
been  the  rule,  the  President  sent  a  written  Message, 
as  more  suited  to  republican  simplicity,  and  succeeding 
Presidents  have  followed  the  example.  In  the  debates 
•which  followed  the  Message  the  Republicans  advo- 
cated and  carried  reductions  in  the  army,  the  navy, 
taxes  and  duties.  Instead  of  the  fourteen  years'  resi- 
dence necessary  for  naturalization  under  a  Federalist 
law,  five  years  were  substituted. 

5.  The  remainder  of  the  Session  was  occupied  by 
debate  on  a  proposed  repeal  of  a  Judiciary  Law 
passed  at  the  last  Session,  by  which  twenty-four  new 


I8O2.]       Repeal  of  the  Jzidiciary  Law.  55 

Federal  Courts  had  been  erected,  with  the  proper  com- 
plement of  officers  to  each.  The  Republicans  claimed 
that  there  had  not  been  business  enough  to  occupy  the 
United  States  Courts  already  in  existence;  that  the 
bill  had  been  hastily  drawn  up  and  passed,  after  the 
Republican  success  in  the  last  election  had  been  as- 
sured, only  in  order  to  provide  offices  for  Federalist 
leaders,  who  were  about  to  be  driven  from  power ;  and 
that  President  Adams  had  been  kept  busy  until  mid- 
night of  his  last  day  of  office  in  signing  commissions  for 
the  judges.  All  this  seemed  to  the  Republicans  a  gross 
abuse  of  power,  and  they  were  determined  to  oust  the 
"  midnight  judges  "  by  repealing  the  law.  The  Con- 
stitution seemed  plainly  to  prohibit  any  such  repeal,  and 
the  existence  of  the  Republican  party  was  based  upon 
a  strict  construction  of  the  Constitution.  Party  neces- 
sities and  vindictiveness,  however,  soon  found  availa- 
ble interpretations  for  the  Constitution,  and  the  law  was 
repealed.  The  Federal  party,  which  had  founded  and 
nurtured  the  Federal  Government,  was  thus  driven 
from  its  last  strong  hold  in  it,  and  lost  forever  the  con- 
trol of  national  politics,  though  it  retained  its  power  in 
New  England  for  about  ten  years  afterward.  Congress 
adjourned  May  3d,  1802. 

6.  In  the  Spring  of  1802  news  came  from  France 
which  did  much  to  cool  the  pro-French  partizanship 
of  even  the  most  zealous  Republicans.  France  had 
acquired  from  Spain  the  vast  territory  known  as  Louis- 
iana, stretching  from  the  mouth  to  the  head  of  the 
Mississippi,  and  indefinitely  Westward  toward  the  Pa- 


56  American  Politics.  [1802. 

cine.  The  United  States  were  thus  to  be  hemmed  in 
by  one  of  the  great  European  belligerents  on  the  North, 
and  by  another  on  the  South  and  West,  and  the  poli- 
cies and  alliances  of  Europe  were  to  be  extended  to 
the  Western  Continent.  The  President  at  once  di- 
rected the  American  Minister  at  Paris  to  lay  the  strong- 
est remonstrances  before  the  French  Emperor.  He 
was  ordered  to  declare  that,  while  the  present  posses- 
sion of  Louisiana  by  a  weak  nation  like  Spain  would  be 
tolerated,  its  transfer  to  a  strong,  active,  colonizing 
power  like  France  would  immediately  drive  the  United 
States  into  close  alliance  with  England,  and  that,  in 
short,  the  foreign  possessor  of  New  Orleans  must  be 
the  enemy  of  the  United  States. 

7.  Congress  met  December  6th,  1802.  The  Pres- 
Vllth  Congress,  ident's  Message  stated  that 

2d  Session.  $8,000,000  of  the  public  debt  had 
been  paid  during  the  year,  and  called  attention  to 
Spain's  unfriendly  action  in  closing  New  Orleans,  which 
she  still  controlled,  against  American  commerce.  Reso- 
lutions condemning  Spain's  conduct  were  introduced 
and  passed  by  the  Republicans.  A  constitutional 
Amendment  changing  the  mode  of  the  Presidential 
election  was  debated,  but  did  not  obtain  the  necessary 
two-thirds  vote.  Some  of  the  Republicans  made  an 
unsuccessful  attempt  to  abolish  the  Mint,  as  a  useless 
piece  of  expense,  and  the  Federalists  were  equally  un- 
successful in  attempting  to  fasten  a  charge  of  mis- 
management upon  the  Treasury.  The  rest  of  the 
Session  was  spent  in  considering  the  Yazoo  Frauds, 


1 8  o  2 .  ]  Oh  io. — Lou  i si  ana.  5  7 

which   had   no   party   interest.      Congress   adjourned 
March  3d,  1803. 

8.  Ohio  had  become  a  State  of  the  Union  Novem- 
ber 29th,  1802.     It  was  formed  from  the  North-West 
Territory,  which  had  been  organized  by  an  ordinance 
of  July  1 3th,  1787.     Article  VI  of  this  ordinance  reads: 
"  There  shall  be  neither  slavery  nor  involuntary  servi- 
tude in  the  said  Territory,  otherwise  than  in  the  pun- 
ishment of  crimes  whereof  the  party  shall  have  been 
duly  convicted."     The  ordinance  of  1787  is  noteworthy 
as  an  exercise  by  the  Congress  of  the  Confederacy  of 
the  right  to  exclude  Slavery  from  the  Territories.1 

9.  James   Monroe  had  been  sent  to  France  to 
buy  Florida  and  the  island  of  Orleans.     France  was 
preparing  for  renewed  war  with  Great  Britain  and  was 
in  need  of  money.     Monroe  therefore  transcended  his 
instructions,  and  made  a  bargain  for  all  Louisiana  for 
$15,000,000.     The    President   at    once   agreed  to  it, 
though  he  believed  that  the  Constitution  gave  the  Fed- 
eral Government  no  power  to  purchase  foreign  terri- 
tory and  make  it  a  part  of  the  Union.     But  he  likened 
his  action  to  that  of  a  guardian  who  makes  an  unau- 
thorized purchase  for  the  benefit  of  his  ward,  trusting 
that  the  latter  will  afterward  ratify  it.     In  this  instance 
the  ratification  was  prepared  as  an  Amendment  to  the 
Constitution,  but  was   never   offered,  the    President's 

1  It  will  be  found  that  the  language  of  this  ordinance  was  copied  in  the  ef- 
forts made  in  1819  (Missouri),  1846  (Wilmot  Proviso),  and  1865  (XHIth 
Amendment),  to  assert  and  maintain  for  the  Federal  Congress  under  the  Con- 
stitution this  power  of  regulating  and  abolishing  Slavery  in  the  Territories  of 
the  United  States,  and  finally,  in  the  States,  as  the  result  of  civil  war. 


1,8  American  Politics.  [1803. 

action  having  been  in  effect  ratified  by  general  ac- 
quiescence in  it,  and  imitated  without  question  in  sev- 
eral instances  afterward. 

10.  Congress  met  October  rytli,  1803,  having  been 
Vlllth  Congress,     called  to  an  early  session  by  the 

ist  Session.  President  that  there  might  be 

more  time  for  discussing  the  French  Treaty.  Both 
branches  had  Republican  majorities,  and  in  the  House 
Nathaniel  Macon  was  again  chosen  Speaker.  The 
Treaty  was  ratified,  and  appropriations  made  for  its  ex- 
ecution, after  a  debate  which  was  almost  a  repetition 
of  that  on  Jay's  Treaty  in  1795,  each  party,  however, 
citing  the  arguments  and  resolutions  then  offered  by 
the  opposite  party.  During  this  Session  the  manner 
of  the  Presidential  election  was  amended  to  the  form 
which  it  has  at  present.  Having  been  ratified  by  the 
necessary  number  of  States,  this  became  the  Xllth 
Amendment.  Articles  of  impeachment  were  voted 
by  the  House  against  a  Federalist  Judge,  Chase,  of 
Maryland,  for  arbitrary  and  oppressive  conduct  in  try- 
ing cases  under  the  Alien  and  Sedition  Laws.  Con- 
gress adjourned  March  27th,  1804. 

11.  The    Republicans    offered   the    President    and 
George   Clinton,  of  New  York,  as    their    Presidential 
candidates.     Burr  had  come  too  near  the  Presidency 
in  1 80 1  to  be  made  prominent  again  with  Jefferson's 
consent.     He  was  therefore  dropped,  and  Clinton  took 
his  place.     The  Federalists  offered  as  their  candidates 
Charles    C.  Pinckney,  of  South    Carolina,  and    Rufus 
King,  of  New  York.     The  Presidential  Election 


1804.]  Presidential  Election. — Chase  Trial.       59 

in  November  resulted  in  the  overwhelming  defeat  of 
the  Federalists,  who  carried  only  Connecticut  and  Del- 
aware, with  two  electors  in  Maryland. 

12.  Congress  met  November  5th,  1804.    The  Session 
Vlllth  Congress,     was   mainly   occupied    by   the 
2d  Session.  Trial  of  Judge  Chase  by  the 

Senate,  on  articles  of  impeachment  prepared  by  the 
House  at  its  last  Session.  Unfortunately  the  trial  be- 
came a  party  struggle.  The  Federalists  espoused  the 
cause  of  Judge  Chase,  and  the  Republicans  were 
determined  to  convict  him.  Vice-President  Burr, 
who  presided  at  the  trial,  had  shot  Hamilton  in  a 
duel  near  New  York  in  July,  1804,  and  thus  deprived 
the  Federalists  of  their  ablest  leader.  But  his  im- 
partiality and  contempt  for  party  demands  during  the 
Chase  trial  went  far  to  induce  them  to  condone  his 
offense.  A  sufficient  number  of  Senators  did  not  vote 
to  condemn  Judge  Chase  on  any  one  charge,  and 
he  was  found  not  guilty  on  all.  The  angry  disap- 
pointment of  the  Republicans  led  them  to  introduce 
several  Amendments  to  make  impeachment  and  con- 
viction more  easy  and  certain,  but  none  were  adopted. 
In  February,  1805,  the  electoral  votes  were  counted, 
and  were  found  to  be,  162  for  Jefferson  and  Clinton, 
and  14  for  Pinckney  and  King.  Jefferson  and  Clin- 
ton were  therefore  declared  elected.  March  3d,  1805, 
Congress  adjourned,  and  March  4th  Jefferson  and 
Clinton  were  sworn  into  office. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

FIFTH  ADMINISTRATION,  1805-1809. 

Thomas  Jefferson,  President.  George  Clinton,  Vice-President. 

IXth  and  Xth  Congresses. 

1.  CONGRESS  met  December  2d,  1805,  with  an  over- 
IXth  Congress,     whelming  Republican  majority  in 

ist  Session.  both  branches.  Nathaniel  Macon 
was  again  chosen  Speaker  in  the  House.  Federalism 
still  retained  control  of  New  England,  with  the  excep- 
tion of  Vermont.  In  the  other  States  it  seemed  to  be 
dead  or  dying.  But  New  England's  influence  was  so 
much  greater  than  its  proportionate  size  that  the  party 
which  controlled  it  was  certain  to  be  at  least  a  strong 
minority  in  national  politics. 

2.  The  Napoleonic  wars  still  continued,  and  Great 
Britain  and  France  were  using  every  expedient  to  crip- 
ple each  other,  without  regard  to  the  rights  of  neutral 
nations.     While  the  President  was  anxious  to  defend 
American  commerce,  he  was  averse  to  increasing  the 
expenses  of  his   Administration   by  building  a  navy. 
He  therefore  recommended,  and  Congress  adopted,  a 

60 


1805.}  The  Randolph  Faction.  6 1 

plan  for  the  building  of  a  number  of  small  gun-boats, 
as  more  economical  than  ships  of  war.  This  "  Gun- 
boat System  "  was  always  hateful  to  the  navy,  and 
was  a  constant  object  of  Federalist  ridicule  and  attack. 

3.  The  President  again  called  the  attention  of  Con- 
gress to  the  unfriendly  actions  of  the  Spanish  authori- 
ties at  New  Orleans.     His  Message  on  this  subject  was 
referred  to  a  committee  of  which    Randolph,  of  Vir- 
ginia, was  chairman.     Randolph  had  been  one  of  the 
Republican  leaders  while  the  party  was  in  opposition, 
but  his  irritable  spirit  disqualified  him  for  heading  an 
Administration  party.     He  could  attack,  but  could  not 
defend.     He  had  taken  offense  at  the  President's  re- 
fusal to  make  him  Minister  to  England,  and  immedi- 
ately took   sides   with  the    Federalists,  foUowed  by  a 
number  of  his  friends,  though  not  sufficient  to  give  the 
Federalists  a  majority.     Randolph's  committee  reported 
resolutions  which  the  Republicans  voted  down,  on  the 
ground  that  they  were  calculated  to  provoke  a  need- 
less collision  with  Spain.     A  substitute  was  then  passed 
authorizing  the  President  to  purchase  the  Floridas  from 
Spain.1     This  was  afterward  modified  by  a  resolution 
that  it  was  advisable  to  exchange  a  part  of  Louisiana 
for  East  and   West   Florida.     The  Randolph  faction, 
popularly  called  "  Quids,"  gave  fresh  life  to  the  Fed- 
eralists in  Congress,  and  made  them  an  active  and  use- 
ful opposition  party. 

4.  Through  the  first  three  months  of  1806  various 
resolutions  were  offered  in  Congress,  looking  toward 
Retaliation  upon  England.     They  culminated  in 

1  This  was  not  effected,  however,  until  1819. 


62  American  Politics.  [1806. 

the  adoption  of  an  Act  to  prohibit  the  importation  of 
certain  English  goods  after  November  i5th.  The  vote 
upon  this  bill  (93  to  32  in  the  House,  and  19  to  9  in  the 
Senate)  is  a  fair  statement  of  the  Administration  major- 
ity at  this  Session.  Another  unsuccessful  attempt  was 
made  to  facilitate  the  removal  of  Federal  Judges.  The 
increase  of  loose  constructionist  ideas  among  the  Re- 
publicans was  marked  by  the  passage  of  a  bill  for  the 
construction  of  a  National  Road  from  Maryland  to 
Ohio.1  Congress  adjourned  April  2ist,  1806. 

5.  The  summer  of  1806  was  spent  by  the  quids  in 
efforts  to  bring  Monroe  back  from  his  mission  to  En- 
gland, to  be  used  as  a  Presidential  candidate  against 
Madison,  whom  the  President  was  supposed  to  favor. 
The  late  Vice-President,  Burr,  came  up  again  to  pub- 
lic notice,  by  a  mysterious  expedition  down  the  Mis- 
sissippi, by  which  he  hoped  to  retrieve  his  fallen  fort- 
unes.    It  was  not  known  whether  its  object  was  col- 
onization, an  attack  upon  the  Spanish  possessions,  or 
the  founding  of  an  independent  western  empire.     The 
President,  hy  proclamation,  cautioned  all  citizens  not 
to  engage  in  the  enterprise,  and  gave  orders  for  Burr's 
arrest. 

6.  Congress  met  December  ist,  1806.     The  Presi- 
IXth  Congress,     dent's  Message  called  attention 

2d  Session.  to  the  growing  excess  of  receipts 
over  expenditures,  and  suggested  Amendments  to  the 
Constitution  giving  Congress  the  doubted  power  to  ex- 

1  This  was  the  first  appearance  of  the  question  of  making  Internal  Improve- 
ments at  FcderaJ  £xp**r.«e,  which  afterwards  divided  parties  from  1830  until 
1856. 


1807.]  Burrs  Expedition.  63 

pend  the  surplus  on  roads,  canals,  and  education.  No 
action  was  taken  upon  them.  The  Act  prohibiting 
importations  from  England,  passed  at  the  last  Session, 
was  suspended  until  July  ist,  1807,  and  the  President 
was  given  discretionary  power  to  suspend  it  until  De- 
cember. 

7.  January  22d,  1807,  the  President  sent  to  Congress 
the  dispatches  which  showed  the  progress  of  Burr's 
Expedition  up  to  that  time.     The  Senate,  in  great 
alarm,  passed  unanimously  a  bill  to  suspend  the  writ 
of  habeas  corpus  for  three  months,  a  measure  repug- 
nant  to    all    the    principles    of   the    dominant    party. 
Three  days  afterward  the  House  rejected  the  bill,  by  a 
vote  nearly  unanimous.     Congress  adjourned  March 
3d,    1807.     Burr's   expedition    had    by  this  time    dis- 
banded, and  its  leader  was  on  his  way  to  Virginia,  to 
be  tried  for  treason,  his  enterprise  having  been  begun 
within  the  limits  of  that  State. 

8.  In  December,  1806,  a  Treaty  with  England 
had  been  arranged,  which  was  almost  identical  with 
Jay's  treaty  of  1795.     As  it  left  England  at  liberty  to 
impress  American   seamen,   and  to  search  American 
ships,  the  President  rejected  it,  without  laying  it  before 
the  Senate,  and  tried  further  negotiation,  but  without 
success.     His  action  was  supported  by  the  Republic- 
ans, and  attacked  by  the  Federalists,  who  were  the 
commercial  part  of  the  community,  and  were  anxious 
for  almost  any  treaty  with  England.     The  rejection  of 
this  treaty  embittered  English  feeling  against  the  Unit- 
ed States,  and  was  probably  a  leading  cause  of  the  re- 


64  American  Politics.  [1807. 

newed  English  aggressions,  the  Embargo,  and  the  War 
of  1812. 

9.  Burr's    Examination  began  in   May,    1807, 
before  the  Grand  Jury  in  Richmond,  Va.     It  took  a 
party  aspect  almost  from  the  beginning.     The  Feder- 
alists considered  Burr's  arrest  an  Executive  usurpation 
of  power.     The  President  was  determined  that  the  re- 
sult of  the  trial  should  justify  his  action,  and  became 
notorious  for  his  interference  in  the  management  of  the 
case.     His  letters  to  the  District  Attorney  were  frequent, 
and  his  anxiety  for  Burr's  conviction  roused  the  Federal- 
ists  to  greater  exertions  for  Burr's  acquittal.    The  counsel 
for  defense  even  caused  a  writ  to  be  served  upon  the 
President,  commanding  his  personal  attendance  as  a  wit- 
ness.   The  President  refused  to  obey,  on  the  ground  of 
public  inconvenience,  and  the  matter  was  not  pressed. 
The  Grand  Jury   found  an  indictment  against   Burr. 
His  trial  came  on  in  August,  before  Chief  Justice  Mar- 
shall, and  resulted  in  his  acquittal  for  want  of  jurisdic- 
tion.    The  administration  was  thus  defeated,  and  aban- 
doned any  further  earnest  prosecution  of  Aaron  Burr. 

10.  In  June,  1807,  the  British  frigate  Leopard,  off 
Hampton  Roads,  had  taken  by  force  four  seamen  from 
the  United  States  frigate  Chesapeake,  after  a  shame- 
fully feeble  resistance.     Both   political  parties  joined 
heartily  in  the  indignation  excited  by  this  outrage,  and 
war  with  England  would  have  been  everywhere  popu- 
lar, for  the  day  was  past  when  parties  were  ready  to  go 
all  lengths  in  support  of  either  France  or  England. 
I'he  President  was  anxious  for  peace,  and  left  the  mat 


1807.]  The  Chesapeake  Outrage.  65 

ter  to  be  settled,  some  years  afterward,  by  negotiation. 
It  would  be  out  of  place  to  discuss  here  the  alternating 
attacks  on  neutral  rights  by  the  great  European  bellig- 
erents, before  and  after  this  date,  the  proclamation  by 
England  of  a  paper  blockade  of  the  whole  French 
coast,  the  counter  proclamation  by  France  of  a  paper 
blockade  of  the  British  islands,  the  Orders  in  Council 
to  the  English  navy  to  search  neutral  vessels  for  French 
goods,  and  the  counter  orders  to  the  French  navy  to 
capture  every  vessel  which  should  submit  to  such 
search.1  England's  power  being  the  greater  on  the 
ocean,  her  aggressions  bore  most  heavily  on  the  United 
States,  whose  commerce  was  rapidly  being  destroyed. 

ii.  The  President,  by  proclamation,  had  warned  all 
Xth  Congress,  British  armed  vessels  not  to  enter 
ist  Session.  American  ports,  and  had  called  an 
early  session  of  Congress.  It  met  October  26th,  1807, 
with  a  Republican  majority  in  both  branches.  In  the 
House  a  Republican,  Joseph  B.  Varnum,  of  Massachu- 
setts, was  chosen  Speaker.  The  President  recom- 
mended a  bill  by  which  American  vessels  should  be 
prohibited  from  leaving  foreign  ports,  and  foreign 
vessels  from  taking  cargoes  from  the  United  States, 
and  all  coasting  vessels  should  be  required  to  give 
bonds  to  land  their  cargoes  in  the  United  States 
This  was  the  celebrated  Embargo  Bill,  which  de- 
stroyed, for  the  time,  all  American  commerce,  in- 
tensified party  feeling,  and  even  threatened  the  exist- 

1  Jefferson,  in  a  private  letter,  said  that  "  England  seemed  to  have  become 
a  den  of  pirates,  and  France  a  cien  of  thieves." 


66  American  Politics.  [1808, 

ence  of  the  Union.  It  was  passed  by  strict  party 
votes,  being  opposed  vehemently  by  the  Federalists 
and  quids,  on  the  ground  that  it  would  injure  the 
United  States  rather  than  England,  and  would  com- 
plete the  commercial  ruin  which  foreign  attacks  had 
begun.  Having  given  the  President  the  power  of 
suspending  the  Embargo  Act  whenever  it  should  seem 
advisable  to  him  to  do  so,  Congress  adjourned  April 
25th,  1808. 

12.  Presidential  Nominations   were    made   at 
this  Session  by  Congressional  caucuses.     The  Repub- 
licans   nominated    James    Madison,  of   Virginia,   for 
President,  and  George  Clinton,  of  New  York,  for  Vice- 
President.     Madison's  chief  competitors  for  the  nomi- 
nation were  James  Monroe,  who  was  supported  by  the 
quids  of  the  Virginia  Assembly,  and  George   Clinton, 
who  was  supported  by  a  part  of  the  New  York  Repub- 
licans.    The  Federalists  nominated  C.  C.  Pinckney,  of 
South  Carolina,  for  President,  and  Rufus  King,  of  New 
York,  for  Vice- President.     The  President  had  been  re- 
quested by  the  Legislatures  of  most  of  the  Republican 
States  to  accept  a  third  term,  but  declined. 

13.  During  the  summer  of  1808  the  Embargo  be- 
gan to  bear  so  heavily  on  the  commercial  interests  of 
New  England  and  the  Middle  States  that  their  com- 
plaints drowned  other  subjects  of  discussion,  and  took 
away  much  of  the  excitement  of  a  Presidential  election. 
The  remaining  strength  of  the  Federalists  was  concen- 
trated in  these  States,  so  that   party  bitterness  aggra- 
vated financial  distress.     It  was  said   that   the  Repub- 


l8o8.~|   Presidential  Election. — Embargo.  67 

lican  States  had  devised  the  Embargo  as  a  substitute  for 
war,  because  its  ill  effects  would  fall  mainly  upon  the 
Federalist  States.  There  was  every  indication  that 
New  England  would  obey  it  with  reluctance.  The 
choice,  however,  lay  between  war,  an  embargo,  or  sub- 
mission. For  the  latter  there  were  very  few  advocates. 
The  war  party  was  divided,  some  of  its  members  wish- 
ing for  war  against  England,  others  for  war  against 
France,  and  still  others  for  war  against  both.  The 
great  majority  of  the  people  still  favored  the  Embargo, 
and  the  Presidential  Elecftion  in  November  re- 
sulted largely  in  favor  of  the  Republicans.  New  En- 
gland stood  almost  alone  in  choosing  Federalist  electors. 

14.  Congress  met  November  yth,  1808.    Its  proceed- 
Xth  Congress,     ings  were  confined  to  resolutions 

2d  Session.  and  protests  against  French  and 
English  aggressions,  and  the  rejection  of  Federalist  res- 
olutions to  repeal  the  Embargo,  until  February,  1809. 
In  that  month  John  Quincy  Adams,  who  had  re- 
signed the  Massachusetts  Senatorship  because  his  sup- 
port  of  the  Embargo  had  been  disapproved  by  his  State 
Legislature,  informed  the  President  that  the  Embargo 
could  no  longer  be  enforced  in  New  England,  that  the 
Federalist  leaders  had  made  all  arrangements  to  break 
off  from  federal  relations  with  the  rest  of  the  Union 
unless  the  Act  was  repealed,  and  that  an  agent  from  the 
Canadas  was  then  in  New  England  to  offer  the  assist- 
ance of  the  English  Government  to  the  scheme.1 

15.  Adams's  warning  impressed  the  President  and  the 

1  Adams's  accuracy  has  been  denied,  and  it  has  even  been  asserted  that  hi? 


68  American  Politics.  [1809 

Republican  leaders  so  much  that  they  at  once  secured 
the  passage  of  a  modification  of  the  Embargo,  known 
as  the  Non-Interccurse  A(5l.  By  this  the  Em- 
bargo was  repealed,  after  March  4th,  as  to  commerce 
with  all  nations  excepting  England  and  France.  It 
was  hoped  that  this  would  quiet  the  excitement  in  New 
England,  without  yielding  the  principle  of  the  Embargo 
1 6.  In  February  the  electoral  votes  were  counted, 
and  were  found  to  be,  for  President,  122  for  James 
Madison,  6  for  George  Clinton,  and  47  for  C.  C.  Pinck- 
ney,  and  for  Vice-President,  113  for  George  Clinton, 
47  for  Rufus  King,  and  15  scattering.  Madison  and 
Clinton  were  therefore  declared  elected.  March  3d, 
1809,  Congress  adjourned,  and  March  4th  Madison 
and  Clinton  were  sworn  into  office. 

appointment,  soon  after,  as  Minister  to  Russia  was  the  reward  of  his  wilful 
falsification. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

SIXTH    ADMINISTRATION,   1809-1813. 

James  Madison,  President.  George  Clinton,  Vice-President, 

Xlth  and  Xllth  Congresses. 

i.  THE  Difficulties  with  England  were  compli- 
Xlth  Congress,  cated,  at  the  beginning  of  Madi« 
Extra  Session,  son's  term  of  office  by  an  unfortu- 
nate mistake  of  the  British  Minister,  Mr.  Erskine, 
caused  by  his  desire  for  peace.  Shortly  after  the 
inauguration  he  informed  the  President  that  he  was 
authorized  by  his  Government  to  withdraw  the  objec- 
tionable orders  to  the  English  navy.  The  President 
therefore,  by  proclamation,  summoned  a  Special  Ses- 
sion of  Congress  to  meet  May  22d,  1809,  and  sus- 
pended the  Non-Intercourse  Act,  as  applied  to  En- 
gland, after  June  loth.  This  he  was  authorized  to 
do  by  the  terms  of  the  Act.  Congress  met  on  the  day 
appointed,  with  a  Republican  majority  in  both  branches. 
In  the  House  Speaker  Varnum  was  re-elected.  En- 
gland had  in  the  mean  time  disavowed  her  Minister's 
offer,  and  recalled  him,  and  a  new  proclamation  by  the 

60 


70  American  Politics.  [1809. 

President  restored  the  Non-Intercourse  Act  as  before. 
The  Federalists  represented  the  whole  misunderstand- 
ing as  a  Republican  trick  to  influence  the  elections. 
There  being  no  business  to  occupy  Congress,  it  ad- 
journed June  28th. 

2.  Congress  met  November  27th,  1809.     The  Re- 
Xlth    Congress,     publican  majority  was  so   large 

ist  Session.  that  every  Administration  meas- 
ure was  promptly  carried,  and  there  was  little  party 
conflict.  A  continuance  of  the  Non-Intercourse  Act 
was  voted.  Mr.  Erskine's  successor  had  contradicted 
the  Secretary  of  State  so  frequently  and  so  offensively 
that  Congress,  by  a  strict  party  vote,  passed  a  resolu- 
tion declaring  his  language  to  be  insolent,  and  request- 
ing the  President  to  recognize  him  no  longer.  Con- 
gress adjourned  May  ist,  1810. 

3.  Congress  met  December  3d,  1810.     France  had 
Xlth  Congress,     managed  so  adroitly  as  to  leave 

2d  Session.  it  in  doubt  whether  her  objection- 
able decrees  had  been  withdrawn  or  not.  The  Re- 
publicans chose  to  consider  them  withdrawn,  and  re- 
pealed the  Non-Intercourse  Act,  as  applied  to  France. 
The  President  endeavored  to  induce  England  to  with- 
draw her  Orders  in  Council,  but  this  was  refused  on 
the  ground  that  there  was  no  evidence  of  any  repeal 
by  France.  The  Non-Intercourse  Act  was  therefore 
continued  against  England. 

4.  An  effort  was  made  at  this  Session  to  re-charter 
the  National   Bank,  which  had  been  chartered  in 
1791   for  twenty  years.     Opposition  to  such  a  bank 


i8i  i.]         Adoption  of  a  War  Policy.  71 

was  a  necessary  article  of  belief  among  Strict  Construc- 
tionists.  But  the  corporation  had  so  many  Repub- 
lican friends  in  Congress  that  a  bill  to  recharter  it  was 
favorably  reported  by  the  committees  of  both  branches, 
and  after  long  debate  was  only  defeated  by  a  majority 
of  one  vote  in  the  House,  and  by  the  casting  vote  of 
the  Vice-President  in  the  Senate.  Thereupon  the 
Bank  wound  up  its  business,  and  ceased  to  act.  Con- 
gress adjourned  March  3d,  1811. 

5.  Congress  met  November  4th,  1811.  The  Re- 
Xllth  Congress,  publican  majority  was  still  over- 

ist  Session.  whelmingly  large,  but  it  con- 
tained several  rising  and  energetic  members,  who  af- 
terward became  party  leaders,  and  who  were  now  suc- 
cessfully urging  upon  the  party  a  Change  of  Policy. 
Hitherto  Jefferson  and  Madison  had  made  it  a  peace 
party,  and  had  carefully  avoided  direct  conflict  with 
France  or  England.  The  capture  of  over  900  American 
merchant  vessels  since  1803  had  been  no  more  effectual 
than  such  isolated  outrages  as  the  Chesapeake  case  in 
rousing  the  Administration  to  the  idea  of  forcible  resist- 
ance. Under  the  new  leaders  the  Republicans  became 
a  war  party.  Henry  Clay,  of  Kentucky,  was  chosen 
Speaker  of  the  House.  William  H.  Crawford,  of 
Georgia,  in  the  Senate,  and  John  C.  Calhoun,  of 
South  Carolina,  in  the  House,  became  the  recognized 
Congressional  leaders  of  the  party.  The  economical  and 
retrenching  policy  of  Jefferson  was  abandoned,  and 
preparations  were  begun  for  hostilities,  against  the  op- 
position of  the  Federalists,  and  the  timid  or  peace  lov- 


72  American  Politics.  [1812 

ing  Republicans.     Bills  were  passed  to  enlist  men,  to 
organize  the  militia,  and  to  equip  and  enlarge  the  navy. 

6.  The   President  was  given  to  understand  that 
his  nomination  for  a  second  term  of  office  depended 
upon  his  adoption  of  the  war  policy,  and  that  his  re- 
fusal to  do  so  would  cause  the  nomination  of  De  Witt 
Clinton,  of  New  York,  in  his  stead.     Thus  pressed  the 
President   yielded,  and  was  consequently  renominated 
by  the  usual  caucus  of  Republican  members  of  Con- 

$,  \\ith  Elbridge  Gerry,  of  Massachusetts,  for  Vice- 
President.  Clinton  refused  to  be  bound  by  this  bar- 
gain, and,  having  been  nominated  by  a  Republican 
caucus  of  the  New  York  Legislature,  persisted  in  his 
candidacy.  To  profit  by  this  promising  division  among 
the  Republicans,  a  caucus  of  leading  Federalists,  held 
in  New  York  City,  decided  to  support  Clinton,  with 
Jared  Ingersoll,  of  Pennsylvania,  for  Vice-President. 

7.  In  March,  1812,  the  President  took  the  first  step 
in  fulfillment  of  his  bargain  by  sending  to  Congress, 
with  a  special   Message,  certain   documents,  which  he 
had  purchased  from  one  John  Henry  for  $50,000. 
Henry  claimed  to  have  been  the  agent  sent  from  Can- 
ada in  1809  to  detach  the  New  England  Federalists 
from  their  allegiance  to  the  Union,  and  his  documents 
purported  to  show  the   complicity  of  the  British  Gov- 
ernment.    The    British    Minister   solemnly   denied  all 
knowledge  of,  or  belief  in,  any  such  agent,  but   Con- 
gress, by  resolution,   proclaimed    Henry's    documents 
authentic,  and  denounced  England's  perfidious  attack 
on  the  unity  of  a  friendly  nation.     The  principal   ef- 


l8i2.~]  Declaration  of  War.  73 

feet  of  this  episode  was  to  outrage  and  exasperate  the 
Federalists  of  New  England. 

8.  As  a  preliminary  to  war  an  Embargo  was  laid 
upon  American  shipping   for  90    days.     The    British 
Minister  finally  declared,  May  3oth,  that  his   Govern- 
ment would  not  recede  from  its  policy  toward  neutrals. 
Dispatches  from  the  American  agent  in    London  in- 
formed the   President  that  the  same  declaration  had 
been  made  by   the    English    Ministry  in   Parliament. 
The  President  therefore  sent  a  Message  to  Congress, 
June  ist,  reviewing  the  past  and  present  difficulties  with 
Great  Britain.     It  was  referred  to  a  committee,  whose 
report  was  a  summary  of  American  grievances  against 
England,  the  impressment  of  American   seamen,  the 
Orders  in  Council,  the  system  of  paper  blockades,  and 
the  refusal  to  settle  American  claims  for  damages.     It 
concluded  by  recommending  a  declaration  of  war. 

9.  An  Act  was  consequently  passed,  and  signed  by 
the  President,  June   i8th,  declaring  that  a  State  of 
War  existed  between  the  United  Kingdom  of  Great 
Britain   and   Ireland   and   its   dependencies,  and   the 
United  States  of  America.     Of  the  98  members  who 
voted  for  the  war  76  were  from  the  South  and  West. 
On  the  following  day  the  President's  proclamation  an- 
nounced that  the  war  had  begun.     We  have  nothing 
to  do  with  its  events,  except  as  they  influenced  politics 
in  the  United  States.     It  was  soon  learned  that  the 
Orders  in  Council  had  been  revoked  in  London  five 
days  after  the  declaration  of  war,  but  the  revocation 
came  too  late.     Even  if  it  had  been  made  in  time,  the 


74  American  Politics.  [1812. 

war  party  would  probably  have  insisted  upon  the  aban* 
donment  by  England  of  the  right  of  search  and  im- 
pressment, and  would  have  declared  war  on  that  issue. 
Congress  adjourned  July  6th,  1812.  April  3oth, 
Louisiana  had  become  a  state  of  the  Union. 

10.  The  Presidential  Election  in  November  re- 
sulted in  the  success  of  a  large  majority  of  Republican 
electors,   and   of    members    of    the  Xlllth   Congress 
pledged  to  support  the  Administration  and  the  war. 
But  the  Opposition  to  the  War  was  manifested  by 
every  legal  method  from  its  very  beginning.     Immedi- 
ately after  the  declaration  the  Federalist  members  of 
Congress  had  published  their  protest  against  it  in  an 
address  to  their  constituents.     Under  the  Act  passed 
by  Congress  to  embody  the  militia,  requisitions  were 
made  by  the  President  upon  the  Governors  of  the  dif- 
ferent States  for  their  respective  quotas.     The    Gov- 
ernors of  Massachusetts  and  Connecticut  refused  to  al- 
low their  militia  to  leave  their  States,  on   the  ground 
that  the  Federal  Government  could  not  constitutionally 
call  out  the  militia  until  an  invasion  had  taken  place, 
or  the  laws  of  the  United  States  had  been  resisted.     In 
this,  as  in  many  other  instances  throughout  the  war,  the 
possession  of  power  by  the  Republicans  inclined  them 
toward  a  loose  construction  of  the    Constitution,  and 
the  Federalists  toward  a  strict  construction  of  it. 

11.  Congress  met  November  2d,  1812.     The  large 
Xllth  Congress,     Republican   majority   prevented 

2d  Session.          any   party   contest.     The   Ran- 
dolph faction,  or  Quids,  had  ceased  to  have  a  separate 


1813.]        Formation  of  a  Peace  Party.  75 

existence  after  its  failure  to  nominate  Monroe.  Most 
of  its  members  were  now  supporters  of  the  Administra- 
tion. The  remainder,  with  the  Federalists  and  those 
Republicans  who  opposed  the  war,  had  formed  a 
"  Peace  Party."  But  their  defection  was  more  than 
compensated  by  the  number  of  Federalists  whom  it 
drove  into  political  union  with  the  war  party.  In  Con- 
gress both  parties  united  in  rewarding,  encouraging,  and 
increasing  the  Navy,  whose  brilliant  exploits  had  in- 
toxicated the  whole  nation  with  the  unexpected  con- 
sciousness that  it  alone,  of  all  the  nations  of  the  earth, 
could  match  and  master  England  upon  her  own  ele- 
ment, the  ocean.  This  Session  wras  occupied  mainly 
in  measures  necessary  for  the  active  prosecution  of  the 
war,  which  were  all  passed  by  party  votes.  In  Feb- 
ruary the  electoral  votes  were  counted  and  were  found 
to  be,  for  President,  128  for  Madison,  and  89  for  Clin- 
ton, and,  for  Vice- President,  131  for  Gerry,  and  86  for 
Ingersoll.  Madison  and  Gerry  were  therefore  de- 
clared elected.  March  3d,  1813,  Congress  adjourned, 
and  March  4th  Madison  and  Gerry  were  sworn  into 
office. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

SEVENTH  ADMINISTRATION,   1813-1817. 

James  Madison,  President.  Elbridge  Gerry,  Vice-President 

XHIth  and  XlVth  Congresses. 

1.  CONGRESS   met    May   24th,    1813,   having   been 
Xlllth  Congress,     summoned  by  the  President  to 

Extra  Session.  a  Special  Session  to  con- 
sider the  difficulties  encountered  in  raising  money  for 
the  War.  The  President's  Message  also  mentioned  the 
proffered  mediation  of  the  Czar  of  Russia,  which  En- 
gland afterward  declined.  In  the  House  Henry  Clay, 
of  Kentucky,  was  chosen  Speaker,  and  the  vote  (89  to 
54)  represents  the  Administration  majority.  The  Re- 
publican majority  in  the  Senate  was  weakened  by  a  fac- 
tion opposed  to  the  Administration.  The  business  of 
this  Session  was  mainly  routine.  Congress  adjourned 
August  2d. 

2.  The  Dislike  to  the  War  and  its  management 
became  more  apparent  as  it  went  on.     The  Connecti- 
cut Legislature  had  declared  it  to  be  the  solemn  and 
deliberate  opinion  of  the  people  of  that  State  that  the 


1813.]  Opposition  to  the  War.  77 

war  was  unnecessary.  So  notorious  was  the  general 
feeling  of  the  Eastern  States  that  England  had  en- 
deavored to  mark  a  political  division  between  New 
England  and  the  rest  of  the  Union  by  exempting  Mas- 
sachusetts (which  included  the  present  State  of  Maine), 
Rhode  Island,  and  New  Hampshire,  from  the  blockad 
of  the  Atlantic  Coast. 

3.  Congress  met  December  6th,  1813.     This  Session 
Xlllth  Congress,     was  also  occupied  chiefly  with 

ist  Session.  routine  business,  and  in  efforts 
to  improve  the  condition  of  the  finances.  Illicit  trade 
from  the  New  England  coast  to  the  English  ships  had 
become  so  common  that  a  New  Embargo  Ad:  was 
passed,  applying  to  all  vessels,  large  or  small.  Con- 
gress adjourned  April  i8th,  1814.  In  August  occurred 
the  sack  and  burning  of  Washington  by  an  English  ex- 
pedition, an  affair  almost  equally  disgraceful  to  both 
nations;1 

4.  Congress  met  September  iQth,  1814.     Negotia- 
XHIth  Congress,     tions  for  Peace  had  been  be- 
ad Session.  gun  in  August.     Napoleon  was, 

for  the  time,  overthrown,  and  the  American  Govern- 
ment was  anxious  for  almost  any  honorable  peace,  in 
preference  to  continuing  the  war  with  England.  The 
Orders  in  Council  had  been  revoked  long  before,  and 
the  American  Commissioners  were  instructed  not  to  in- 
sist upon  the  other  object  of  the  war,  the  abandonment 
of  the  rights  of  search  and  impressment.  The  English 
demands  rose  as  those  of  the  United  States  fell.  En- 

1  The  President  barely  escaped  capture. 


78  American  Politics.  [1814. 

gland  now  insisted  that  an  independent  Indian  nation 
should  be  organized  between  Canada  and  the  United 
States,  and  that  the  United  States  should  maintain  no 
fleet  or  military  posts  on  the  Great  Lakes. 

5.  The  publication  of  these  conditions  in  October 
again  roused  the  war  feeling  of  the  Republicans,  and 
some  of  their  leaders  began  to  meditate  measures  which 
the  strict  constructionist  principles  of  the  party  could 
not  justify.     The  Secretary  of  War  proposed  the  in- 
crease of  the  army  by  a  draft,  or  conscription.     The 
Secretary  of  the  Navy  proposed  to  introduce  the  En- 
lish  system  of  impressment  of  seamen.     To  Republic- 
ans generally  such  measures  seemed  unconstitutional, 
and  they  were  rejected,  though  strongly  urged  by  the 
Administration.     Fresh    discontent   was   excited  by  a 
bill  offered  in  the  Senate,  allowing  officers  of  the  army 
to  enlist  minors  over  18  years  old  without  consent  of 
their  parents  or  guardians.     The  Connecticut  Legisla- 
ture ordered  the  Governor  to  resist  the  execution  of 
these  and  similar  measures,  if  they  should  become  laws. 

6.  The  commercial    distress    in    New   England,  the 
possession  by  the  enemy  of  a  large  part  of  the  District 
of  Maine,  the  fear  of  their  advance  along  the  coast,  and 
the  apparent  neglect  of  the  Federal  Government  to 
provide  any  adequate  means  of  resistance,  had  led  the 
Legislature  of  Massachusetts,  in  October,  to  invite  the 
other  New  England  States  to  send  delegates  to  Hart- 
ford, Connecticut,  "to  confer  upon  the  subject  of  their 
public    grievances."     Delegates    from     Massachusetts, 
Rhode  Island  and  Connecticut,  and  from  parts  of  Ver- 


l8i4-]          The  Hartford  Convention.  79 

mont  and  New  Hampshire,  met  at  Hartford  in  Decem- 
ber and  remained  in  session  for  three  weeks.  In  their 
Report  to  their  State  Legislatures  they  reviewed  the 
state  of  the  country,  the  origin  and  management  of  the 
war,  and  the  strong  measures  lately  proposed  in  Con- 
gress, and  recommended  several  Amendments  to  the 
Constitution,  chiefly  with  intent  to  restrict  the  powers 
of  Congress  over  commerce,  and  to  prevent  naturalized 
citizens  from  holding  office.  In  default  of  the  adoption 
of  these  Amendments,  another  convention  was  advised, 
"in  order  to  decide  on  the  course  which  a  crisis  so 
momentous  might  seem  to  demand." 

7.  This  was  the  famous  Hartford   Convention. 
The  peace  which  closely  followed  its  adjournment  re- 
moved all  necessity  or  even  desire  for  another  session 
of  it.     Its  objects  seem  to  have  been  legitimate.     But 
the  unfortunate  secrecy  of  its  proceedings,  and  its  some- 
what ambiguous  language,  roused  a  popular  suspicion, 
sufficient  for  the  political  ruin  of  its  members,  that  a 
dissolution  of  the  Union  had  been  proposed,  perhaps 
resolved  upon,  in  its  meetings.     Some  years  afterward 
those  concerned  in  it  were  compelled  in  self-defense  to 
publish  its  journal,  in  order  to  show  that  no  treasonable 
design  was   officially  proposed.     It  was  then,  however, 
too  late,  for  the  popular  opinion  had  become  fixed. 
Neither  the   Federal  party  which   originated,  nor  the 
Federalist  politicians  who  composed  the  assembly  were 
ever  freed  from  the  stigma  left  by  the  mysterious  Hart- 
ford Convention. 

8.  In  February,  1815,  the  welcome  and  unexpected 


8o  American  Politics. 

news  of  Peace  reached  Congress.  It  was  welcome  to 
the  Administration,  whose  inexperience  in  the  conduct 
of  the  war  had  involved  it  in  great  financial  straits,  to 
the  Federalists,  who  considered  the  war  iniquitous,  and 
even  to  the  war  party,  who  had  begun  to  anticipate  a 
single  contest  with  England.  Therefore  the  peace, 
tvhich  actually  secured  not  one  of  the  objects  for  which 
war  had  been  declared,  occasioned  rejoicings  which 
would  have  been  more  appropriate  for  a  more  success- 
ful termination  of  the  war.  The  rest  of  this  Session 
was  necessarily  spent  in  the  active  reduction  of  govern- 
ment to  a  peace  establishment,  and  in  the  reduction  of 
expenses,  with  the  exception  of  the  navy.  The  Acts 
which  had  been  necessary  in  preparing  for  or  carrying 
on  the  war  were  repealed.  Congress  adjourned  March 
3d,  1815. 

9.  The  close  of  the  war  marks  the  final  Extinction 
of  the  Federal  Party.  The  few  remaining  Federal- 
ists from  this  time  began  to  desist  from  any  united 
party  action.  The  whole  people  composed  one  party 
whose  principles  were  neither  those  of  the  original  Fed- 
eral, nor  those  of  the  original  Republican,  party,  but  a 
combination  of  both.  The  cardinal  principle  of  the 
Federal  party,  the  preservation  and  perpetuity  of  the 
Federal  Government,  had  been  quietly  accepted  and 
adopted  by  the  Republicans,  while  the  Republican 
principle  of  limiting  the  Federal  Government's  powers 
and  duties  had  been  adopted  by  the  Federalists  when 
the  Federal  Government  had  fallen  into  Republican 
aands,  But,  though  the  principles  of  the  Federalists 


1 8 1 5 .]     Extinction  of  the  Federal  Party.  8 1 

had  made  an  abiding  impression  upon  the  form  of  gov- 
ernment, their  party  opposition  to  the  war  had  made 
the  name  so  unsavory  that  it  soon  began  to  fall  into 
disuse. 

10.  Congress  met  December  4th,  1815,  with  a  large 
XlVth  Congress,     Republican    majority   in    both 

ist  Session.  branches.  In  the  House  Henry t. 
Clay  was  again  chosen  Speaker.  This  Session  was  oc- 
cupied chiefly  by  the  regulation  of  Internal  Affairs, 
which  occasioned  but  little  party  contest.  Taxes  were 
reduced,  and  a  slight  increase  was  made  in  the  Tariff. 
Some  indications  appeared,  during  the  debate,  of  a 
growing  feeling  among  Republicans  that  the  Tariff 
ought  to  be  so  arranged  as  to  give  protection  to  those 
manufactures  which  had  sprung  up  in  America  during 
the  war,  but  were  now  being  endangered  by  the  im- 
portation of  cheaper  goods  of  English  make.  The  mat- 
ter went  no  further  than  debate  at  this  Session. 

11.  The  spread  of  loose  constructionist  ideas  among 
the  Republicans  was  marked  in  April,  1816,  by  the  pas- 
sage of  a  bill  for  the  charter  of  a  National  Bank,  to 
expire  in  1836.     It  was  modeled  upon  the  one  which 
the  Republicans  had  opposed  in  1791  and  1811.    Ham- 
ilton's argument  in  favor  of  such  a  bank  was  repub- 
lished  by  Republican  newspapers  with  a  warmth  of  ap 
proval  which  showed  how  far  the  party  had  forgotten 
its  strict  constructionist  principles.     Congress  adjourned 
April  3oth,  1816. 

ii.  Presidential  Candidates  were  nominated  by 
the  usual  Congressional  caucuses.     Among  the  Repub- 
6 


82  America,- 1  Politics.  [1816, 

licans  the  Virginia  influence,  which  had  named  the 
President  for  24  of  the  28  years  since  1789,  was  again 
successful  in  nominating  James  Monroe,  his  principal 
competitor  being  Wm.  H.  Crawford,  of  Georgia.  Dan- 
iel D.  Tompkins,  of  New  York,  was  nominated  for  the 
Vice-Presidency.  For  President  the  Federalists  sup- 
ported Rufus  King,  of  New  York,  but  united  on  no 
one  for  the  Vice- Presidency.  The  Presidential 
Election  in  November  resulted  in  complete  Repub- 
lican success.  Only  three  States,  Massachusetts,  Con- 
necticut, and  Delaware,  chose  Federalist  electors. 

13.  Congress  met  December  2d,  1816.     December 
XlVth  Congress,     nth,  Indiana  became  a  State 
2d  Session.  of    the    Union.     This    Session 

was  almost  without  party  contest.  In  February,  1817, 
the  electoral  votes  were  counted  and  were  found  to  be, 
for  President,  183  for  Monroe,  and  34  for  King,  and, 
for  Vice-President,  183  for  Tompkins,  and  34  for  vari- 
ous other  persons.  Monroe  and  Tompkins  were 
therefore  declared  elected.  March  3d,  1817,  Congress 
adjourned,  and  March  4th  Monroe  and  Tompkins  were 
sworn  into  office. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

EIGHTH    ADMINISTRATION,    1817-1821. 

James  Monroe,  President.        Daniel  D.  Tompkins,  Vice-President. 
XVth  and  XVIth  Congresses. 

1.  The  President  appointed  a  Republican  Cabi- 
net.    He  had  been  urged  to  ignore  parties  in  his  ap- 
pointments, but  in  his  opinion  the  time  had  not  yet 
come  to  do  so.     May  3ist  he  began  an  extended  tour 
through  the  Northern  States,  being  the  first  President 
to  imitate  Washington's  example  in  this  respect.     The 
welcome  everywhere    given   him   probably  helped  to 
blot  out  the  last  remnant  of  Federalist  opposition. 

2.  Congress  met    December    ist,   1817.     The   pro- 
XVth  Congress,     fessed  Federalists  were  very  few. 

ist  Session.  In  the  House  Speaker  Clay  was 
re-elected  almost  unanimously.  December  loth  Mis- 
sissippi became  a  State  of  the  Union.1  The  first  Act 
of  this  Session  abolished  the  internal  taxes  which  had 

1  Appendices  C  and  F  will  show  how  carefully  a  new  Free  State  was  at 
once  balanced  by  the  creation  of  a  new  Slave  State,  in  order  to  control  the 
Senate. 

83 


84  American  Politics. 

been  imposed  during  the  war.  In  his  Message  the 
President  had  taken  occasion  to  recommend  a  Pro- 
te(ftive  Tariff.  The  question  was  compromised, 
nearly  unanimously,  by  the  passage  of  a  bill  continuing 
for  seven  years  the  Tariff  of  1816  on  cottons  and  wool- 
ens, which  was  slightly  protective.  A  proposition  was 
made  to  use  the  dividends  of  the  United  States  from 
the  National  Bank,  instead  of  appropriations.  It  was 
postponed  because  of  the  opposition  of  Strict  Con- 
structionists.  A  resolution,  supported  by  Clay,  to  rec- 
ognize the  South  American  Republics,  formed  by 
Spain's  revolted  colonies,  was  rejected.  Congress  ad- 
journed April  2oth,  1818. 

3.  It  is  plain  that  the  all-powerful  Republican  party 
already  contained  the  Nucleus  of  a  New  Party, 
and  a  leader  for  it  in  the  person  of  Henry  Clay.     He 
had  headed,  or  advocated,  every  attempt  to  increase 
the  army  and  navy,  to  make  the  Tariff  protective,  to 
begin  a  system  of  general  public  improvements  at  na- 
tional expense,  or  to  make  the  Federal  Government 
prominent  in  foreign  affairs,  as  the  guardian  of  the  in- 
fant Republics  of  South  America.     All  of  these  meas- 
ures seemed  to  Strict    Constructionists    either  uncon- 
stitutional or  unwise.     Some  of  Clay's  followers  were 
only  temporarily  attracted  by  his  personal   influence, 
but  the    great  majority  were   Loose    Constructionists, 
Federalists  in  reality,  though  they  would  have  disliked 
the  name. 

4.  The  summer  of  1818  was  marked  by  Indian  dif- 
ficulties in  Florida,  which  deserve  mention  because  their 


1 8 1 8.]  The  Seminole  War.  8 5 

investigation  took  up  much  of  the  time  of  the  next 
Session  of  Congress.  In  quelling  disturbances  among 
the  Georgia  Indians  Andrew  Jackson  had  been  sys- 
tematically thwarted  by  the  Spanish  authorities  of 
Florida.  He  therefore  entered  their  territory,  seized 
their  principal  towns,  and  captured  and  put  to  death, 
"  as  outlaws  and  pirates."  Arbuthnot  and  Ambrister, 
two  British  subjects,  who  had  led  the  Seminole  Indians. 

5.  Congress  met  November  i6th,  1818.     December 
XVth  Congress,     3d  Illinois  became  a  State  of 

ad  Session.  the  Union.  In  the  House  the 
Committee  on  Military  Affairs  offered  two  reports  on 
The  Seminole  War.  The  majority  report  proposed 
a  censure  upon  Jackson  for  his  execution  of  Arbuthnot 
and  Ambrister,  declaring  it  to  be  unwise,  unnecessary, 
and  unjustifiable  by  the  laws  of  war  or  of  nations.  The 
minority  report  approved  his  action.  The  majority  re- 
port was  rejected  by  the  House  and  postponed  by  the 
Senate.  The  contest  was  then  transferred  to  the  news- 
papers, where  it  raged  violently. 

6.  February  22d,  1819,  a  treaty  was   concluded  by 
which  Spain  sold  the  Floridas  to  the  United  States 
for  $5,000,000,  and  the  United  States  abandoned  all 
claim  to  the  territory  West  of  the  Sabine  River  (after- 
wards known   as  Texas),  which   had  formed  part  of 
Louisiana   as    purchased   from    France.1     A    territory 
worth  ten  Floridas  was  thus  surrendered  to  Spain,  and 
became  a  part  of  the  Republic  of  Mexico  two  years 
later. 

1  Within  thirty  years  the  determination  of  the  South  to  regain  this  aban 
doned  territory  forced  the  United  States  into  war  with  Mexico. 


86  American  Politics.  [1819, 

7.  At  this  Session  the  people  of  the  Territory  of 
Missouri  (a  part  of  the  Louisiana  Purchase)  applied 
for  permission  to  form  a  State  government.     In  the 
House  an  amendment  was  offered  to  the  bill,  forbid- 
ding Slavery  or  involuntary  servitude  in  Missouri,  except 
as  a  punishment  for  crime.1     Party  lines  were  at  once 
dropped.     The  members  from  the  Free   States  voted 
for,  and  the  members  from   Slave  States  against,  the 
amendment.     It  passed  the    House,  was  rejected  by 
the  Senate,  and  the  bill  was  lost.     Congress  adjourned 
March  3d,  1819. 

8.  The  application  of  Missouri  thus  suddenly  brought 
up  the  Slavery  Question,2  which  was  to  be  argued 
and  compromised  for  forty  years,  and  then  settled  by 
civil  war.     Negro  Slavery,  in  the   early  colonial  days, 
had  been  common  in  all  the  colonies,  excepting  Massa- 
chusetts, and  had  even  been  decided  legal  by  the  high- 
est English  court  of  law.     In  the  North  it  had  since 
been  abolished  in  the  States  lying  north  of  the  dividing 
line  run  by  the  old  surveyors,  Mason  and   Dixon,  be- 
tween Maryland  and  Pennsylvania.     In  the  South  it 
worked   mildly,  and  was  considered  a  necessary  and 
hereditary  evil.     But  the  invention  of  Whitney's  cotton 
gin  in  1793  had  made  slave  labor  profitable,  and  had 
made  Slavery  an  institution  to  be  defended  and  ex- 
tended by  the  Southern  States.     While  the  Union  was 
confined  to  the  fringe  of  States  along  the  Atlantic  coast 

*  This  was  copied,  in  part,  from  that  of  the  ordinance  of  1787. 
2  Its  appearance  was  so  sudden  that  Ex-President  Jefferson  said  it  startled 
Kim  "like  a  fire-bell  in  the  night." 


1819.]  Slavery. —  The  Tariff.  87 

the  Slavery  question  was  not  troublesome.  And  it  was 
at  first  possible  to  unite  the  representatives  of  both  sec- 
tions in  the  admission  of  new  States,  by  using  the  Ohio 
as  a  dividing  line  between  the  States  in  which  Slavery 
should  be  forbidden,  and  those  in  which  it  should  be 
allowed.  But  when  the  tides  of  emigration  had  crossed 
the  Mississippi  and  had  begun  to  fill  the  Louisiana 
Purchase,  conflict  was  inevitable,  for  the  dividing  line 
was  lost  In.  the  House  the  members  from  the  Free 
States  were  a  majority.  In  the  Senate  the  sections  had 
been  carefully  equalized,  but  a  few  Northern  Senators 
generally  voted  with  the  South,  thus  giving  it  a  ma- 
jority in  that  body. 

9.  Congress  met  December  6th,  1819.  The  state 
XVIth  Congress,  of  parties  was  unchanged.  In 
ist  Session.  the  House  Speaker  Clay  was 
re-elected  almost  unanimously.  December  i4th 
Alabama  became  a  State  of  the  Union.  At  this  Ses- 
sion a  Protective  Tariff  was  passed  by  the  House, 
but  rejected  by  the  Senate.  The  result,  though  it  dis- 
appointed the  Eastern  manufacturers,  who  had  confi- 
dently expected  relief  from  Congress,  shows  a  still 
further  advance  of  loose  constructionist  principles  in 
the  dominant  party.  Strict  Constructionists  believed 
that  the  Constitution  gave  Congress  power  to  lay  du- 
ties only  with  a  design  to  provide  for  the  expenses  of 
the  Government  and  for  the  payment  of  the  debt,  and 
that  the  arrangement  of  duties  for  the  benefit  of  any 
branch  of  manufactures  was  usurpation  of  a  power  not 


88  American  Politics.  [18201 

granted  or  implied.1  Loose  Construe  tionists  believed 
that  the  power  to  regulate  commerce  and  provide  for 
the  common  defense  implied  the  power  to  lay  a  Pro- 
tective Tariff,  and  that  any  consequent  benefit  to  man- 
ufacturers would  be  more  than  offset  by  the  creation  of 
a  domestic  market  for  agricultural  products. 

10.  At  this  Session  Missouri  again  applied  for  per- 
mission to  form  a  State  government,  and  Maine  (for- 
merly a  part  of  Massachusetts)  made  a  first  application 
for  the  same  permission.     The  House  passed  the  Maine 
bill  without  opposition,  but,  by  a  sectional  vote,  again 
prohibited  Slavery  in  Missouri.     In  the  Senate,  also  by 
a  sectional  vote,  the   Maine  bill  and  a   Missouri  bill 
permitting  Slavery  were  united  and  then  passed.     This 
was  for  the  purpose  of  compelling  both  bills  to  stand 
or  fall  together,  and  of  throwing  upon  the  House  the 
responsibility  for  their  acceptance  or  rejection.     The 
House  rejected  the  combined  bills,  as  passed  by  the 
Senate,  and  adhered  to  its  first  action. 

11.  The  difficulty  was  settled  by  the  famous  Mis- 
souri Compromise  of  1820,  which  was  adopted  by 
the  active  exertions  of  Clay  and  the  moderate  mem- 
bers from  both  sections.     By  this  measure  each  section 
yielded  a  part  of  its  demands,  the  Senate  by  permitting 
Maine  and  Missouri  to  be  voted  upon  separately,  and 
the  House  by  permitting  Slavery  in  Missouri.     Both 
branches  then  united  in  forever  prohibiting  Slavery  in 

1  But  there  have  been  very  few  advocates  of  absolutely  Free,  Trade  re- 
moval of  (til  duties  on  imports),  and  the  entire  payment  of  Government  ex- 
penses by  internal  taxation.  The  party  distinction  given  in  the  text  seems  to 
have  generally  governed  our  political  history. 


i82O.]          The  Missouri  Compromise.  89 

all  other  territory  north  of  the  line  of  36°  30'. 1  Maine 
was  then  admitted  as  a  State  of  the  Union,  and  the  bill 
authorizing  a  State  government  to  be  formed  in  Mis- 
souri was  passed.  Congress  adjourned  May  i5th, 
1820. 

12.  No  Presidential  candidates  were  nominated  this 
year,  there  being  no  opposition  to  the  re-election  of 
President  Monroe  and  Vice- President  Tompkins.     All 
the  electors  chosen  in  the  Presidential  Election  in 
November  were  Republican,  but  one  of  them  refused 
to  vote  for  Monroe,  so  that  his  election  \vas  not  unan- 
imous. 

13.  Congress  met   November  i3th,  1820.     Speaker 
XVIth  Congress,     Clay  resigned  his  position  on  ac- 

2d  Session.  count  of  private  affairs.  After 
three  days'  balloting  for  a  successor  John  W.  Taylor, 
of  New  York,  a  Loose  Constructionist,  in  favor  of  a 
Protective  Tariff  and  an  internal  improvement  system, 
and  opposed  to  extension  of  Slavery,  was  chosen.  His 
election  shows  the  progress  of  the  division  in  the  Re- 
publican party.  It  gave  great  offense  to  the  Southern 
members,  and  they  for  a  time  debated  a  dissolution  of 
the  Union,  a  remedy  which  has  been  proposed  at  vari- 
ous times  by  almost  every  section  for  every  variety  of 
grievance. 

14.  Missouri,  having  formed  a  State  government, 

1  Thirty-five  Southern  members,  who  believed  that  Congress  had  no  power 
to  prohibit  Slavery  in  the  Territories,  voted  against  the  Missouri  Compromise. 
Randolph  called  it  "a  dirty  bargain,"  and  gave  those  who  voted  for  it  the 
name  of  "doughfaces."  This  title  was  always  afterward  applied  to  Northern 
men  "of  Southern  principles." 


90  American  Politics.  [1821. 

applied  for  admission.  It  was  rejected  in  the  House, 
by  a  sectional  vote,  on  account  of  a  clause  in  its  con- 
stitution, prohibiting  the  entrance  of  free  negroes  into 
the  State.1  It  was  not  until  March  2d,  1821,  that  this 
difficulty  was  settled,  again  by  Clay's  exertions.  Mis- 
souri was  then  admitted,  on  condition  that  the  State 
should  never  pass  an  act  to  interfere  with  the  constitu- 
tional privileges  of  the  citizens  of  other  States.  But 
the  Legislature  only  accepted  the  condition  in  June, 
1821. 

15.  In  February,  1821,  the  Electoral  Votes  were 
counted.  It  was  known  that  Missouri,  which  claimed 
to  be  already  a  State,  and  protested  against  the  right 
of  Congress  to  reject  her  application,  had  chosen  elect- 
ors. It  was  also  known  that  Southern  members  would 
make  a  vigorous  effort  to  have  these  votes  counted. 
After  a  stormy  session  on  the  day  of  counting,  lasting 
in  the  House  for  several  hours  after  the  time  appointed 
for  joint  meeting  with  the  Senate,  another  compromise 
was  affected.  The  President  of  the  Senate  was  di- 
rected, in  case  any  objection  should  be  made  to  the 
vote  of  Missouri,  to  announce  that  "if  the  votes  of  Mis- 
souri were  counted,  the  number  of  votes  for  A.  B. 
for  President  would  be  so  many,  and  if  the  votes  of 
Missouri  were  not  counted  the  number  of  votes  for  A. 
B.  for  President  would  be  so  many,  and  that  in  either 
case  A.  B.  was  elected."  There  being  no  opposition 
to  the  Republican  candidates,  the  result  of  course  was 
foreknown. 

1  In  some  of  the  Northern  States  free  negroes  were  citizens. 


1 8 2 1 .]  The  Vote  of  Missouri.  9 1 

1 6.  Considerable  delay  and  confusion  was  caused  in 
joint  meeting  by  an  unsuccessful  attempt  of  some  of 
the  Southern  members  to  renew  the  contest,  but  the 
vote  was  finally  announced  as  previously  agreed. 
There  were  235  votes,  including  that  of  Missouri,  and 
232  without  it.  Not  counting  the  vote  of  Missouri 
there  were,  for  President,  228  votes  for  James  Monroe, 
and  i  for  John  Quincy  Adams,  and,  for  Vice-President, 
215  votes  for  Daniel  D.  Tompkins,  and  14  for  various 
other  persons.1  Monroe  and  Tompkins  were  there- 
fore declared  elected.  March  3d,  1821,  Congress  ad- 
journed, and  on  Monday,  March  5th,  Monroe  and 
Tompkins  were  sworn  into  office. 

1  Three  electors  had  died  before  having  an  opportunity  to  vote. 


CHAPTER  X. 

NINTH  ADMINISTRATION,   1821-1825. 

James  Monroe,  President.          Daniel  D.  Tompkins,  Vice-President, 
XVIIth  and  XVIIIth  Congresses. 

1.  MONROE'S  election  had  been  so  nearly  unanimous, 
and  party  divisions  had  nominally  so  far  disappeared, 
that  this  Administration  is  commonly  called  The  Era 
of  Good   Feeling.     In   reality  there  was  as  much 
bad  feeling  between  the  Strict  Constructionists  and  the 
Loose    Constructionists    of  the    Republican    party  as 
could  have  existed  between  two  opposing  parties.     The 
want  of  regularly  organized  parties  had  only  the  effect 
of  making  the  next  Presidential  election  a  personal  in- 
stead  of  a  party  contest,  the  worst  form  which  a  polit- 
ical struggle  can  take. 

2.  Congress  met  December  3d,  1821.      In  the  House 
XVIIth  Congress,     P.  P.  Barbour,   of  Virginia,   a 

ist  Session.  Strict  Constructionist,  was  chos- 

en   Speaker.     The    Loose    Constructionists,   however, 
succeeded  in  passing  a  bill  for  the  preservation  of  the 
Cumberland  Road,  but  it  was  vetoed  by  the  Presi- 
92 


1 822.]      The  Tariff. — Monroe  Doctrine.  93 

dent,  on  the  ground  that  "  Congress  do  not  possess  the 
power,  under  the  Constitution,  to  pass  such  a  law." 
But  his  Message  gave  his  opinion  that  an  Amendment 
to  the  Constitution  should  be  adopted,  giving  the  Fed- 
eral Government  power  to  make  improvements  for 
great  national  purposes.  The  Strict  Constructionists 
succeeded  in  defeating  further  propositions  to  make 
surveys  for  a  national  canal  system,  and  to  make  the 
Tariff  more  protective.  Congress  adjourned  May  8th, 
1822. 

3.  Congress  met   December  2d,  1822.     There  was 
XVIIth  Congress,     little  party  contest  at  this  Ses- 

2d  Session.  sion.     The  Strict  Construction- 

ists defeated  bills  for  an  increase  of  the  Tariff,  and  a 
renewed  attempt  to  create  a  national  canal  system. 
All  other  bills  necessary  for  the  support  of  the  Govern- 
ment were  passed,  generally  by  large  majorities.  Con- 
gress adjourned  March  3d,  1823. 

4.  Congress  met  December  ist,  1823.     Henry  Clay, 
XVIIIth  Congress,     of  Kentucky,  who  was  now 

ist  Session.  the  leader  of  the  Loose  Con- 

structionists in  Congress,  was  chosen  Speaker  in  the 
House.  In  his  Message  President  Monroe  mentioned 
the  war  then  waged  by  Spain  against  her  revolted  col- 
onies, and  declared  that  the  United  States  would  neither 
interfere  in  any  European  war,  nor  tolerate  any  attempt 
by  any  European  power  to  acquire  a  controlling  influ- 
ence in  this  hemisphere.  This  has  since  been  called  the 
Monroe  Doctrine,  and  has  passed  into  a  settled 
rule  of  foreign  policy  for  all  American  political  parties, 


94  American  Politics.  [1824. 

5.  The  President's  Message  showed  that  his  views 
had  slightly  changed,  for  he  incidentally  recommended 
Protection   and   Internal    Improvements.     The  Loose 
Constructionists  were  in  a  majority  in  this  Congress, 
and  after  a  debate  of  more  than  two  months  the  Tariff 
of  1824  was  adopted  by  very  small  majorities.     It  was 
an  advance  on  all  preceding  Tariffs  in  its  consistent 
design  to  exclude  foreign  competing  goods  from  Amer- 
ican markets.     It  was  passed  by  the  Northern  mem- 
bers, except  those  from  the  North-East,  against  the 
almost  unanimous  vote  of  the  Southern  members,  who 
considered   it   sectional,  unconstitutional,   and  unjust. 
The    Loose    Constructionists   were  also   successful  in 
passing  a  bill  for  surveys  for  a  National  Canal  Sys- 
tem.    Congress  adjourned  May  2yth,  1824. 

6.  An  effort  was  made  at  this  Session  by  the  friends 
of  William   H.   Crawford,  of  Georgia,  to   revive  the 
Caucus  System  of  nomination  for  the  Presidency. 
Very  few  members  of  Congress  obeyed  their  call  for  a 
caucus,  and  Crawford's  nomination  by  this  body  really 
injured  his  chances  of  success.     As  there  were  no  rec- 
ognized parties,  the  Presidential  election  degenerated 
into  a  personal  contest,  in  which  the  leading  candidates 
were  Henry  Clay,  of  Kentucky,  Speaker  of  the  House, 
John   Quincy  Adams,  of  Massachusetts,  Secretary  of 
State,  William   H.  Crawford,  of  Georgia,  Secretary  of 
the  Treasury,  and  Andrew  Jackson,  a  private  citizen  of 
Tennessee.1     Clay  and  Adams  were  Loose   Construc- 
tionists.    Crawford  and  Jackson  were  Strict  Construc- 
tionists, but  Jackson  was  objectionable  to  the  Crawford 

*  Hence  it  is  known  as  "  the  scrub-race  for  the  Presidency." 


1824.]          The  Presidential  Election.  95 

faction,  on  account  of  his  leaning  toward  a  Protective 
Tariff.  John  C.  Calhoun,  of  South  Carolina,  Secretary 
of  War,  was  generally  supported  for  the  Vice- Presi- 
dency by  the  friends  of  all  the  other  candidates.  The 
Presidential  Election  in  November  gave  no  candi- 
date a  majority  of  all  the  electors  chosen,  and  therefore 
left  the  President  to  be  chosen  by  the  House  of  Repre- 
sentatives. 

7.  Congress  met  December  6th,  1824.     The  yet  un- 
XVIIIth  Congress,     decided  Presidential  election 
2d  Session.  was    almost   the   only   party 

contest  of  the  Session.  In  February,  1825,  the  elect- 
oral votes  were  counted  and  were  found  to  be,  for 
President,  99  for  Andrew  Jackson,  84  for  John  Quincy 
Adams,  41  for  William  H.  Crawford,  and  37  for  Henry 
Clay,  and,  for  Vice- President,  182  for  John  C.  Calhoun, 
and  78  for  various  other  persons.  Calhoun  was  there- 
fore declared  elected  Vice-President,  and  the  House 
proceeded  to  choose  a  President  from  the  three  highest 
candidates,  each  State  having  one  vote.  As  Clay  stood 
fourth  on  the  list  he  was  not  eligible,  and  it  was  natural 
that  he  and  his  friends  should  unite  on  John  Quincy 
Adams,  the  other  Loose  Constructionist  candidate. 
Through  this  coalition  13  States  voted  for  Adams,  7 
for  Jackson,  and  4  for  Crawford.  Adams  was  there- 
fore declared  elected  President.  The  feeling  excited 
by  this  result  still  further  increased  the  division  be- 
tween the  Strict  Constructionists  and  the  Loose  Con- 
structionists,  who  were  soon  to  be  openly  opposing 
parties.  March  3d,  1825,  Congress  adjourned,  and 
March  4th  Adams  and  Calhoun  were  sworn  into  office. 


CHAPTER  XI. 

TENTH  ADMINISTRATION,   1825-1829. 

John  Quincy  Adams,  President.      John  C.  Calhoun,  Vice-President* 
XlXth  and  XXth  Congresses. 

1.  FROM  the  very  beginning  of  this  Administration 
both  factions  of  the  Strict  Constructionists  united  in  an 
opposition  to  the    President,  which  became   stronger 
through  his  whole  term  of  office,  until  it  overcame  him. 
His  ill-advised  Nomination  of  Clay  to  a  post  in  his 
Cabinet  gave  color  to  the  charge  of  a  corrupt  bargain 
between  him  and  Clay,  by  which  Adams  was  to  receive 
the  Clay  vote  in  the  House,  and  Clay  was  to  be  re- 
warded by  the  position  of  Secretary  of  State,  which 
was  then  usually  considered  a  stepping  stone  to  the 
Presidency.     Clay  angrily  denied  any  such    bargain, 
and  the  renewal  of  charges  and  denials,  each  with  its 
appropriate  arguments,  gave  abundant  material  for  de- 
bate. 

2.  The   Clay  and  Adams  factions  soon  united  and 
took  the  distinctive  party  name  of  National  Repub- 
licans.    Some  years  afterward  this  name  was  changed 


1825.]  Organization  of  Parties.  97 

to  that  of  Whigs.  They  maintained  the  loose  construe- 
tionist  principles  of  the  Federalists,  and,  in  addition,  de- 
sired a  Protective  Tariff  and  a  system  of  public  im- 
provements at  national  expense.  This  policy  was  sug- 
gested by  the  President's  Inaugural,  and  repeated  in 
his  first  Message. 

3.  In  October,  1825,  the  Tennessee  Legislature  nom- 
inated Jackson  for  the  Presidency  in  1828,  and  Jack- 
son accepted  the  nomination.     Crawford's  continued 
ill-health  compelled  his  adherents  to  look  elsewhere  for 
a  candidate,  and  they  gradually  united  upon  Jackson. 
At  first  the  resulting  coalition  was  known  as  "Jackson 
Men,"  but,  as  they  began  to  take  the  character  of  a 
national  party,  they  assumed  the  name  of  Democrats, 
by  which  they  have  since  been  known.     They  main- 
tained the  strict  constructionist  principles  of  the  Repub- 
lican party,  though  the  Crawford  faction  in  the  South 
went  further,  and  held  the  extreme  ground  of  the  Ken- 
tucky Resolutions  of  I799-1     This  had  already  borne 
fruit  in  the  case  of  the  State  of  Georgia  and  the  Chero- 
kee   Indians,  in   which   a  collision   had    almost  taken 
place  between  the  State  and  the  Federal  Government. 

4.  Congress    met     December    5th,    1825.     In    the 
XlXth  Congress,     House  John  W.  Taylor,  of  New 

ist  Session.  York,  a  Loose  Constructionist, 
was  chosen  Speaker.  His  small  majority  (99-94)  rep- 
resents the  Administration  majority  in  the  House.  In 
the  Senate  its  majority  was  larger,  but  in  both  branches 
of  Congress  the  "Jackson  men  "  and  the  Crawford  fao 

1  See  page  47. 


9 8  American  Politics  [1826, 

tion  united  in  a  determined  Opposition.  One-third 
of  the  Session  was  taken  up  by  the  discussion  of  pro- 
posed changes  in  the  manner  of  electing  the  President. 
It  drifted  off  into  an  angry  debate  on  the  "  Clay  and 
Adams  bargain,"  and  came  to  no  result.  The  Opposi- 
tion also  made  a  fruitless  effort  to  limit  the  President's 
appointing  power. 

5.  Most  of  the  measures  proposed  by  the  President 
at  this  Session,  or  known  to  be  favored  by  him,  were 
passed   with    difficulty  or   failed    altogether.      In    the 
Senate  Vice-President  Calhoun,  who  was  disposed  to 
act  with  the  "Jackson  men,"  had  given  them  the  ma- 
jority on  the  committees.     In  the  latter  part  of  this 
Session,  therefore,  the   Senate   took   the  then  unusual 
step  of  depriving  its  presiding  officer  of  the  power  of 
appointing  committees.     Much  time  was  spent  in  de- 
bating the  President's  appointment  of  delegates  to  the 
Congress  of  American  Republics  at  Panama.     It  was 
at  length  approved,  and  forgotten  almost  immediately. 
Appropriations    for   internal    improvements    were   in- 
creased.    Congress  adjourned    May  22d,  1826.     The 
summer  of  1826  was  spent  by  the  opposing  factions  in 
endeavors  to  recruit  or  cement  their  organizations. 

6.  Congress    met    December   4th,    1826.     The    ob- 
XlXth  Congress,     structive  spirit  of  the  Opposi- 

2d  Session.  tion    was   so   determined   that 

few  measures  of  national  importance  were  passed  at 
this  Session.  The  Administration's  supporters  in  the 
House  succeeded  in  passing  a  bill  for  an  increase  of 
the  Tariff,  but  the  Vice- President's  casting  vote  de- 


1827.]         The  Opposition. — Protection.  99 

feated  it  in  the  Senate.  The  Opposition  introduced 
bills,  which  were  defeated,  to  divide  a  part  of  the  rev- 
enue among  the  States,  and  to  repay  fines  levied  under 
the  Sedition  Act  of  1798.  Congress  adjourned  March 
3d,  1827. 

7.  This  was  the  only  Session  of  Congress  in  which 
the  Adams  Administration  had  even  a  nominal  majority. 
The  election  for  members  of  the  XXth   Congress 
had  resulted  in  the  success  of  the  Adams  candidates, 
or  National  Republicans,  in  New  England,  New  Jersey, 
Delaware,   Ohio,   Indiana,   and   Louisiana.      In   New 
York,  Pennsylvania,  and  Illinois,  and  in  every  Southern 
State,  with  the  exception  of   Louisiana,  the  Jackson 
candidates,  or  Democrats,   \vere  successful,  and  thus 
obtained  control  of  the  House. 

8.  From  this  time  the  idea  of  a  connected  system 
of  roads  and  canals,  to  be  built  and  maintained  by  the 
Federal  Government,  was  abandoned,  and  its  advo- 
cates confined  themselves  to  voting  for  isolated  public 
improvements  in  various  parts  of  the  country.     But 
the  demand  for  a  higher  Tariff  than  that  of  1824  was 
brought  still  more  strongly  into  politics  by  a  National 
Convention   of    Protectionists,  at    Harrisburgh, 
Pa.,  July  3oth,  1827.     Many  of  the  Democratic  mem- 
bers elect  to  the  XXth  Congress  from  the  North  sup- 
ported the  National  Republicans  in  their  demand  for 
Protection.     The  Strict  Constructionists  from  the  South 
were  in  favor  of  a  Tariff  for  revenue  only.     The  divi- 
sion upon  this  point  was  therefore  becoming  one  of 
sections,  rather  than  of  parties. 


too  American  Politics.  [1827. 

9.  Congress  met  December  ^d,  1827.     In  the  House 
XXth  Congress,     Andrew  Stevenson,  of  Virginia,  a 

ist  Session.  Democrat,  was  chosen  Speaker. 
This  gave  the  Opposition  the  organization  of  the 
House  and  the  appointment  of  its  committees.  In  the 
Senate  the  hitherto  doubtful  members  at  once  joined 
the  Democrats,  and  the  Opposition  became  a  majorit 
there  also.  The  Debates  at  this  Session  were  almost 
entirely  political.  A  proposition  to  order  a  painting 
of  Jackson's  successful  battle  of  New  Orleans,  and  a 
counter  proposition  to  investigate  his  execution  of  six 
insubordinate  militiamen,  were  solemnly  debated  for  a 
month.  The  increased  expenditure  of  the  Govern- 
ment was  also  the  subject  of  long  debate  without  re- 
sult. 

10.  The  most  important  event  of  this  Session  was 
the  success  of  the  Protectionists  in  passing  the  Tariff 
of  1828,  after  a  debate  of  six  weeks.     It  was  so  pro- 
tective as  to  be  satisfactory  to  manufacturers  and  very 
objectionable  to  the  Southern  States,  where  it  was  con- 
sidered a  legalized  robbery.     From  this  time  the  Nulli- 
fication doctrine  of  the  Kentucky  Resolutions  of  1799 
gained  strength  rapidly  in  the  South.     Congress  ad- 
journed May  26th,  1828. 

11.  The  Democratic  candidates  for  the  Presidential 
election  in  1828  were  Andrew  Jackson,  of  Tennessee, 
and  John  C.  Calhoun,  of  South  Carolina.     The  Na- 
tional    Republican     candidates    were    John    Quincy 
Adams,  of  Massachusetts,  and  Richard  Rush,  of  Penn- 
sylvania.1    The  candidates  on  both  sides  were  nomi- 

1  It  will  be  noticed  that  the  candidates  of  both  parties  were  "sectional." 


1828.]  Presidential  Election.  101 

nated  by  common  consent,  or  by  State  Legislatures. 
The  system  of  Congressional  caucuses  had  been  aban- 
doned, and  that  of  National  Conventions  had  not  yet 
been  adopted.  The  Presidential  Election  in  No 
vember  resulted  in  the  complete  success  of  the  Demo- 
cratic electors. 

12.  Congress  met  December  ist,  1828.  In  his 
XXth  Congress,  Message  the  President  for  the 

2d  Session.  first  time  earnestly  advocated 
Protection.  This  Session  was  uneventful,  as  is  usually 
the  case  after  an  exciting  Presidential  election.  The 
Democratic  majority  were  not  disposed  to  obstruct  the 
Administration  while  engaged  in  putting  its  affairs  in 
order  for  its  successor.  After  long  debate  upon  their 
constitutionality,  unusually  large  appropriations  were 
voted  for  Internal  Improvements,  and  approved 
by  the  President.  In  February,  1829,  the  electoral 
votes  were  counted,  and  were  found  to  be,  for  Presi- 
dent, 178  for  Jackson,  and  83  for  Adams,  and,  for 
Vice-President,  171  for  Calhoun,  7  for  William  Smith, 
of  South  Carolina,  and  83  for  Rush.  Jackson  and 
Calhoun  were  therefore  declared  elected.  March  3d, 
1829,  Congress  adjourned,  and  March  4th  Jackson 
and  Calhoun  were  sworn  into  office. 


CHAPTER  XII. 

ELEVENTH  ADMINISTRATION,   1829-1833. 

Andrew  Jackson,  President.  John  C.  Calhoun,  Vice-President. 

XXIst  and  XXIId  Congresses. 

Popular  vote  for  President  in  1828  / !   Jackwn  (Dem.) 
647,231,  Adams  (Nat.  Rep.)  509,097. 

i.  Jackson's  First  Administration  was  stormy 
in  both  foreign  and  domestic  relations.  Serious  disa- 
greements with  England  as  to  commerce  with  her 
colonies  and  the  boundary  between  Maine  and  British 
America,  and  with  France  as  to  the  payment  of  the 
long  standing  indemnity  for  French  spoliations,  re- 
peatedly threatened  war,  but  were  all  peaceably  settled. 
At  home  the  Administration  was  engaged  in  constant 
struggle  with  its  opponents,  the  National  Republicans, 
the  Anti-Masons,  and  the  United  States  Bank,  and 
was  abandoned  by  a  part  of  its  own  party,  the  Loose 
Constructionists,  who  advocated  Protection  and  In- 
ternal Improvements,  and  the  Nullificationists.  The 

1  Hitherto  electors  had  been  generally  chosen  by  the  State  Legislatures. 
After  1824  they  were  chosen  generally  by  popular  vote.  South  Carolina  COU" 
tinued  to  choose  electors  by  State  Legislature  until  1868. 


1829.]  State  of  Parties.  103 

President's  final  success  came  from  the  impossibility  of 
a  hearty  union  of  his  opponents,  though  many  doubt- 
ful voters  were  attracted  to  him  by  his  military  achieve- 
ments, by  the  undoubted  sincerity  of  his  intentions, 
and  by  natural  sympathy  for  one  man  contending 
against  odds. 

2.  The  National  Republicans  were  in  a  minority 
in  1829,  but  were  continually  reinforced  by  loose  con- 
structionist  Democrats.     They  never  became  a  majority 
party,  but,  by  combining  with  the  other  elements  of 
opposition,  were  frequently  able  to  thwart  the  Presi- 
dent's plans,  and  even  to  censure  his  actions.     Their 
leader  was  Henry  Clay,  now  Senator  from  Kentucky. 
His  popularity  with  his  party  was  already  great,  though 
not  so  unbounded  as  afterward,  when  the  Whig  party 
almost  became  Clay's  personal  party. 

3.  In  1826  William  Morgan,  of  Batavia,  New  York, 
who  had  advertised  a  book  exposing  the  secrets  of 
Free  Masonry,  was  kidnapped  and  never  seen  again. 
The  crime  was  charged  upon  the  society,  and  investi- 
gation, as  it  was  alleged,  was  impeded  by  leading  Free 
Masons.      A   party  soon    grew   up   in   Western   New 
York,  pledged   to   oppose  the  election   of  any   Free 
Mason  to  public  office.     The  Anti- Masonic  Party 
acquired  influence  in  other  States,  and  began  to  claim 
rank  as  a  national  political  party.     On  most  points  its 
principles  were    those   of   the   National    Republicans. 
But  Clay,  as  well  as  Jackson,  was  a  Free  Mason,  and 
consequently  to  be  opposed  by  this  party.1 

J  In  1832  it  even  nominated  a  Presidential  ticket  of  its  own,  but,  having  na 
Rational  principle  of  controlling  importance,  it  soon  after  declined. 


ro4  American  Politics.  [1829, 

4.  Financial  mismanagement,  and  the  distress  grow- 
ing out  of  the  War  of  1812,  had  compelled   Repub- 
licans in   1816  to  abandon  their  strict  constructionist 
principles  and  charter  a  National  Bank  for  twenty 
years.     It  was    empowered    to    hold    $55,000,000    in 
property,  to  issue  $35,000,000  in  notes  receivable  by 
the  United  States  as  cash  for  all  debts,  had   the   use 
without  interest  of  the  United  States  revenues  deposited 
with  it,  and  was  not  amenable  to  State  Laws.     It  had 
friends  and  dependents  in  all  parts  of  the  Union,  some 
seated  in  Congress,  and  many  prominent  in  both   par- 
ties.    Its  power  seemed   to  Jackson   anti-democratic, 
and  his  first  Message  opened  upon  it  a  war  which  soon 
drove  it  into  politics,  and  ultimately  destroyed  it. 

5.  Among  Jackson's  warmest  supporters  were  many 
who  were  sufficiently  loose  constructionist  in   opinion 
to   support    Protection   and    Internal    Improve- 
ments.    Jackson  himself  had  formerly  been  no  op- 
ponent of  either,  and  on  that  account  had  been  objec- 
tionable to  the  Crawford  faction.     His  increasing  dis- 
like to  both  became  apparent  soon  after  the   meeting 
of  Congress  in   1829,  and  alienated  many  of  his  sup- 
porters.    But  these  very  generally  returned  to  his  sup- 
port when  he  had  yielded  to  necessity,  and,  at  least  in 
appearance,    ceased    his    opposition    to    their   favorite 
measures. 

6.  The  extreme  Democracy  of  the  South  had  only 
accepted  Jackson  because  of  the  loss  of  their  formei 
leader,  Crawford.     As  the  progress  of  Jackson's   Ad 
ministration  showed  that  he  could  not  be  relied  upor 


1829.]  Removals  from  Office.  105 

as  a  representative  of  their  determined  hostility  to  Pro- 
tection, they  learned  to  regard  Vice- President  Calhoun 
as  their  leader.  They  had  already  acted  upon  the 
doctrines  of  the  Kentucky  and  Virginia  Resolutions  of 
I798,1  and  the  States  of  Georgia  and  South  Carolina, 
through  their  Legislatures,  had  protested  against  the 
Tariff  of  1828  as  unjust  and  unconstitutional.  Find- 
ing that  this  protest  had  no  effect  upon  other  States  or 
upon  Congress,  they  advanced,  during  Jackson's  first 
Administration,  to  the  ground  taken  by  the  Kentucky 
Resolutions  of  I79Q.2  affirming  the  right  of  any  State  to 
declare  null  and  void  any  Act  of  Congress  which,  the 
State  being  judge,  appeared  unconstitutional.  This 
was  the  doctrine  of  Nullification,  which  grew  to 
Secession  in  i86o.3 

7.  After  the  first  great  party  overthrow  in  the  United 
States,  the  new  President,  Jefferson,  though  he  found 
many  Federalists  in  office,  had  been  able  to  trust  to 
time  and  the  assured  future  supremacy  of  his  party  to 
bring  about  a  change  of  occupants  of  public  offices. 
Successive  Presidents  of  the  same  political  belief  saw 
no  necessity  of  changes.  But  Jackson,  following  a 
President  who  had  almost  created  a  hostile  party,  and 
being  opposed  by  so  many  open  and  concealed  ene- 
mies, decided  to  fill  every  vacancy  with  a  partizan  of 
the  Administration,  and,  further,  to  create  vacancies, 
whenever  it  should  seem  of  party  advantage,  by  exer- 

1  See  page  46.  2  See  page  47. 

8  Its  announcement  in  1832  drew  from  Madison  a  protest  against  the  use  of 
Jefferson's  name  "as  a  pedestal  for  this  colossal  heresy." 


106  American  Politics.  [1829, 

cising  the  almost  unused  privilege  of  Removal  from 
Office.  This  made  necessary,  during  the  summer  of 
1829,  the  application  of  the  comparatively  novel  theory 
of  "  rotation  in  office,"1  by  which  nearly  500  postmas- 
ters were  removed  during  Jackson's  first  year  of  office. 
The  practice  thus  begun  in  self-defense  has  since  been 
adopted  by  all  parties  in  all  elections,  great  and  small, 
national  and  local. 

8.  Congress  met   December  yth,  1829,  with  a  Dem- 
XXIst  Congress,     ocratic  majority  in  both  branches. 

ist  Session.  In  the  House  Andrew  Steven- 
son was  again  chosen  Speaker.  But  his  overwhelming 
majority  (152-39)  did  not  long  cohere.  The  Presi- 
dent's Message  avoided  the  Tariff  question,  and 
advised  the  election  of  President  and  Vice-President 
directly  by  the  people,  an  inquiry  into  the  constitu- 
tionality and  advisability  of  renewing  the  Bank's  char- 
ter in  1836,  and  the  distribution  of  surplus  revenue 
among  the  States  in  preference  to  using  it  for  Internal 
Improvements.  Such  recommendations  were  enough 
to  alienate  many  supporters  of  the  Administration  at 
once,  and  the  committees  to  which  they  were  referred 
reported  in  flat  opposition  to  the  President's  views. 

9.  In   the    Senate  a  resolution   was  introduced  by 
Foot,  of  Connecticut,  directing  an  inquiry  into  the  ex- 
pediency of  limiting  public  land  sales  in  future.     The 
debate  upon  this  apparently  harmless  resolution  lasted 
intermittently  for  five  months,  and  drifted  off  to  a  great 

1  Stated  by  Marcy,  of  New  York,  in  the  Senate,  as  the  axiom  that  "tha 
spoils  of  the  enemy  belong  to  the  victor." 


1830.]         Debate  on  Foot's  Resolution.  107 

variety  of  subjects,  such  as  Slavery,  Western  and  South 
ern  grievances,  New  England  Federalism,  the  rela- 
tive powers  of  the  State  and  Federal  Governments,  and 
Nullification.  During  its  progress,  in  February,  1830, 
the  doctrine  of  Nullification  was  formally  announced 
by  Hayne,  of  South  Carolina,  in  reply  to  Webster,  of 
Massachusetts,  but  limited,  as  yet,  to  peaceable  resist- 
ance. The  eloquence,  learning,  and  party  zeal  of  the 
"  Great  Debate  in  the  Senate,"  as  it  has  always 
been  called,  make  it  almost  a  political  history  of  the 
United  States  up  to  its  date. 

10.  The  case  of  the  Cherokee  Indians  in  Georgia 
was  introduced  at  this  Session.     Under  treaties  with 
the  United  States  these  Indians  held  lands  desired  by 
the  State.     Acts  were  passed  by   the   Legislature  to 
open  up  the  Indian  country  to  white  settlers,  against 
the  protest  of  the  Indians.     To  settle  the  trouble  an 
Act  was  passed  at  this  Session  to  pay  the  Indians  for 
their  lands  and  to  remove  them  beyond  the  Mississippi. 
It  was  opposed  with   much   feeling  by   the   National 
Republicans,  and  failed  to  accomplish  its  purpose,  for 
the  Indians  refused  to  sell  their  lands. 

11.  A  bill  was  passed  at  this  Session  authorizing  a 
Government  subscription  to  the  stock  of  the  Mays- 
ville  Turnpike  Road  in  Kentucky.     The  President, 
believing  that  Congress  had  no  power  to  pass  such  a 
law,  vetoed  it.     Two  days  before  the  adjournment  of 
Congress  two  bills  of  a  similar  nature  to  that  of  the 
Maysville  Turnpike  bill  were  passed.     The  President 
could  legally  retain  them  for  ten  days  before  signing 


io8  American  Politics.  [1830 

them.  He  did  so,  and  in  the  interval  came  the  day 
previously  fixed  for  the  adjournment  of  Congress,  while 
the  bills  remained,  as  it  were,  in  the  President's  pocket, 
without  force  of  law.  This  new  method  of  veto,  an- 
grily called  a  Pocket  Veto,  was  employed  by  the 
President  on  several  occasions  afterward.  Congress 
adjourned  May  3ist,  1830. 

12.  April  1 3th,  1830,  the  leading  Democrats  at  Wash- 
ington gave  a  dinner  to  celebrate  Jefferson's  Birth- 
day.    At  the  close  of  the  regular  toasts,  which  had 
been  so  drawn  as  to  suggest  Nullification,  the   Presi- 
dent rebuked  the  whole  proceeding  by  giving  a  volun- 
teer toast,  "  Our  Federal  Union  :  it  must  be  preserved.'1 
The  Vice-President  retorted  with  another  to  "  Liberty, 
dearer   than    the    Union."     These   counter    defiances 
called  the  attention  of  the  whole  country  to  the  prog- 
ress of  Nullification  among    Democratic   leaders,  and 
indirectly  gave  the  Nullificationists  warning  to  regard  the 
President  as  an  obstacle  to   their  designs.     Calhoun, 
for  whom  Jackson  had  previously  had  a  high  regard, 
and  from  whose  friends  he  had  in  great  part  formed  his 
Cabinet,  recognized  the  President's  growing  suspicion 
and  dislike  of  him,  and  spent  the  summer  of  1830  in 
obtaining    materials,    by   letter   and    otherwise,    for  a 
pamphlet  criticism  of  Jackson's  course  in  the  Serninole 
War  of  1818. 

13.  Congress  met  December  6th,  1830.     The  Presi- 
XXIst  Congress,     dent's    Message  again  attacked 

2d  Session.          the   Bank,   and   argued   against 
the  power  of  Congress  to  vote  public  money  for  aay 


1831.]        Breaking  up  of  the  Cabinet.  109 

internal  improvement  which  was  local  in  its  nature,  and 
not  beneficial  to  the  country  at  large.  The  temper  of 
Congress  was  not  that  of  the  President.  A  Harbor 
Improvement  Bill  was  at  once  introduced  and 
passed  by  majorities  so  large  that  the  President  yielded 
and  signed  it.  He  also  signed  other  bills  of  a  similar 
nature,  making  large  appropriations  for  the  improve- 
ment of  roads  and  rivers,  and  for  a  light-house  system. 
Much  of  this  Session  was  taken  up  by  the  impeachment 
and  trial  of  Judge  Peck,  of  Missouri,  which  had  no 
political  bearing.  Congress  adjourned  March  3d,  1831. 

14.  The   long  promised  attack  upon  the  President 
by  Vice-President  Calhoun  appeared  in  March,  1831, 
and  was  followed  by  the  Breaking  up  of  the  Cabi- 
net.    Its  Calhoun  element  had  for  a  long  time  lost  the 
confidence   of  the    President,  who    apparently  trusted 
more  to  the  advice  of  Van  Buren,  Secretary  of  State, 
and  some  private  friends,  commonly  called  the  Kitchen 
Cabinet.     Van  Buren,  to  whose  machinations  Calhoun 
attributed   the  bad  feeling   between  himself  and   the 
President,  at  once  resigned,  and  the  other  members  of 
the  Cabinet,  by  request,  followed  his  example.1 

15.  Congress  met  December  5th,  1831.     The  Sen- 
XXIId  Congress,     ate,    though    doubtful    at   first, 

ist  Session.  proved  to  have  an  Opposition 
majority.  In  the  house  Speaker  Stevenson,  the  Ad- 
ministration candidate,  was  re-elected  by  one  vote 
(98-97).  The  President's  Message  attacked  the  Bank 

1  It  was  commonly  believed,  however,  that  the  breaking  up  of  the  Cabinet 
was  precipitated  by  trouble  between  the  families  of  its  members. 


no  A merican  Politics.  [1832 

for  the  third  time,  and,  although  its  charter  still  had 
five  years  to  run,  it  felt  compelled  to  begin  the  conflict. 
It  therefore  made  application  for  a  renewal  of  its  char- 
ter. The  President's  supporters  in  the  House  asked 
for  an  investigation  of  the  affairs  of  the  Bank.  The 
committee  appointed  for  this  purpose  made  two  re- 
ports, the  majority  approving,  and  the  minority  con- 
demning, the  Bank's  management.  After  long  debate 
the  bill  to  renew  the  charter  passed  both  Houses,  and 
was  vetoed  by  the  President,  July  icth,  1832.  An  ef- 
fort to  pass  it  over  the  veto  lacked  a  two-thirds  ma- 
jority, and  failed.  The  veto  made  many  new  friends 
and  many  new  enemies  for  the  President,  but  only  in- 
creased the  bitterness  of  the  struggle  between  him  and 
the  Bank. 

16.  In  January,  1832,  the  Nomination  of  Mar- 
tin   Van   Buren,  of  New   York,  late   Secretary   of 
State,  to  be  Minister  to  England,  came  up  in  the  Sen- 
ate for  confirmation.     His  nomination  was  rejected,  al- 
though he  was  already  in  England.     The  vote  was  so 
arranged  as  to  make  a  tie  (23—23),  thus  giving  Vice- 
President  Calhoun  the  "  vengeance  "  of  a  casting  vote 
on  the  rejection.     The  spiteful  feeling  shown  by  some 
of  the  Opposition  probably  made  the  rejection  rather  a 
benefit  to  Van  Buren. 

17.  At  this  Session  a  bill  was  passed  and  signed  by 
the  President,  appropriating   $1,200,000  for  Internal 
Improvements.     Another  bill  of  a  similar  nature 
was  also  passed,  but  was  killed  by  a  "  pocket  veto." 
The  Tariff  of  1832  was  passed   and  signed  by  the 


1832.]  National  Conventions.  ill 

President.  It  was  intended  and  expected  to  pacify  the 
continued  discontent  in  the  South,  particularly  in  South 
Carolina.  This  it  failed  to  accomplish,  for,  though  it 
reduced  the  duties  of  1828,  it  still  recognized  \h&  prin- 
ciple of  Protection.  Congress  adjourned  July  i4th, 
1832. 

1 8.  Presidential   nominations  were  made   this  year 
for  the  first  time  by  all  the  parties  in  National   Con- 
ventions.    All  three  Conventions  were  held  at  Balti- 
more.    That  of  the  Anti-Masons  was  held  first,  in  Sep- 
tember, 1831,  in  the  hope  of  compelling  the  National 
Republicans    to    abandon    Clay,  and    adopt  the  Anti- 
Masonic  candidates.     Judge  McLean,  of  Ohio,  having 
declined  a  nomination,  William  Wirt,  of  Virginia,  and 
Amos  Ellmaker,  of  Pennsylvania,  were  nominated.     In 
December,  1831,  the  National  Republican  Convention 
nominated  Henry  Clay,  of  Kentucky,  and  John  Ser- 
geant, of  Pennsylvania.     The  platform  pronounced  in 
favor  of  Internal    Improvements,  Protection,  and   the 
Bank,  and  against  the  Administration  and  its  course  in 
the  Cherokee  case.     Jackson  had  already  (in  February, 
1830)   been   renominated   for   the    Presidency  by   his 
friends  in  the  New  York  Legislature.     In  March,  1832, 
the   Democratic    National   Convention   confirmed  this 
renomination,  and  nominated   Martin    Van  Buren,  of 
New  York,  for  the  Vice-Presidency.     For  his  success 
in  gaining  the  nomination  Van  Buren  was  indebted  to 
Calhoun's  "  vengeance." 

19.  In  the  Presidential   Election  in  November 
South  Carolina  held  sullenly  off  from  both  parties  and 


112  A  merican  Politics.  [1832. 

chose  electors  pledged  to  candidates  of  her  own,  John 
Floyd,  of  Virginia,  and  Henry  Lee,  of  Massachusetts. 
Anti- Masonic  electors  were  chosen  by  Vermont  alone. 
All  the  other  States,  with  the  exception  of  six,  chose 
Democratic  electors.  But  Jackson's  popular  majority 
was  smaller  than  at  his  first  election,  and  the  Opposi 
lion,  if  it  had  been  possible  to  unite  it,  might  have  de- 
feated him. 

20.  Southern  politicians  had  perhaps  only  aimed  at 
obtaining  the  repeal  of  the  Tariff  of  1828  by  threats  of 
Nullification  and  Secession.  But  when  the  modified 
Tariff  of  1832  showed  that  Protection  in  some  form 
was  to  be  the  settled  policy  of  the  Government,  they 
had  lost  control  of  their  constituents,  and  were  com- 
pelled to  follow  the  current.  In  the  case  of  the  Chero- 
kee Indians,  the  State  of  Georgia  had  already  nullified 
an  Act  of  Congress,  and  refused  obedience  to  the 
United  States  Supreme  Court.  Emboldened  by  this 
example,  and  by  the  belief  that  the  passage  of  Federal 
troops  across  Virginia  and  North  Carolina  would  be 
forcibly  resisted  by  those  States,  a  State  Convention, 
held  at  Columbia,  S.  C.,  November  i9th,  1832,  form- 
ally declared  the  Tariffs  of  1828  and  1832  to  be  "null, 
void,  and  no  law,  nor  binding  upon  South  Carolina, 
her  officers  and  citizens,"  made  any  appeal  to  the 
United  States  Supreme  Court  a  punishable  offense,  pre- 
scribed an  oath  of  obedience  to  this  ordinance  to  be 
taken  by  all  jurors  and  State  officers,  and  concluded 
with  a  warning  to  the  other  States  that  any  attempt  at 
force  would  be  followed  by  the  secession  of  South 


1832.]  Nullification.  113 

Carolina  from  the  Union.  The  Ordinance  of  Nul- 
lification was  to  take  effect  February  ist,  1833.  In 
November  the  State  Legislature  met  and  proceeded  to 
make  the  State  ready  for  war,  and  to  pass  various  Acts 
re-assuming  those  powers  which  had  been  expressly 
abandoned  under  the  Constitution. 

21.  December  i6th,  1832,  the   President  issued  his 
Proclamation  to  the  people  of  South  Carolina.     It 
reviewed  the  history  of  Nullification,  showed  its  treason, 
danger,  and  folly,  and  declared  his  unflinching  purpose 
of  carrying  out  the  laws  in  the  face  of  any  resistance 
whatever.     He  followed  up  his  words  by  occupying 
Charleston  Harbor  with  a  naval  force,  and  providing 
guards  for  the  protection  of  officials  engaged  in  collect- 
ing the  revenue  under  the  Tariff  of  1832. 

22.  Congress  met  December  3d,  1832.     Soon  after- 
XXIId  Congress,     ward  Calhoun  resigned  the  Vice- 
ad  Session.  Presidency,  and  became  Senator 

from  South  Carolina.  Early  in  1833  he  took  an  op- 
portunity to  declare  that  his  State  had  never  intended 
forcible  resistance  to  the  Federal  Government,  and  a 
meeting  of  leading  Nullifiers  in  Charleston  decided  to 
yield  to  the  collection  of  the  revenue  until  after  the  ad- 
journment of  Congress.  At  this  Session  a  Bill  for 
Enforcing  the  Tariff1  was  passed  and  signed  bjr 
the  President.  It  provoked  much  angry  declamation 
in  South  Carolina,  but  no  secession.  After  long  dis- 
cussion of  various  proposed  modifications  of  the  Tariff, 

1  Commonly  called,  in  South  Carolina,  the  "Bloody  Bill."     Its  opponents 
in  the  Senate  refused  to  vote,  with  the  exception  of  John  Tyler,  of  Virginia. 

8 


114  A  incrican  Politics.  [  *  8  3  3 . 

Clay's  Compromise  Tariff  of  1833  was  passed,  and 
signed  by  the  President.  It  provided  for  the  gradual 
reduction  of  the  Tariff  until  1842,  after  which  year  the 
duties  on  all  goods  were  to  be  20  per  cent.  The  Nul- 
lificationists  claimed  this  as  a  complete  triumph,  and 
the  Anti-Tariff  excitement  in  South  Carolina  ended  at 
once. 

23.  Not  even  Nullification  could  compel  the   Presi- 
dent to  desist  for  a  time  from  his  warfare  upon  the 
United   States  Bank.     In  his  Message  at  this  Ses- 
sion he  astonished  Congress  and  the  country  by  ex- 
pressing doubts  of  the  solvency  of  the  Bank.     He  rec- 
ommended a  cessation  of  the  deposits  of  United  States 
revenue  in  it,  and  a  sale  of  the  stock  belonging  to  the 
United  States.     Both  these  propositions  were  easily  de- 
feated   by    the     Congressional    friends    of    the    Bank. 
Clay's  bill  for  the  loan  to  the  States  of  the  proceeds  of 
the  sales  of  public  lands  was  passed,  but  was  disposed 
of  by  a  "  pocket  veto." 

24.  In    February,    1833,    the   electoral  votes  were 
counted,  and  were  found  to  be,  for  President,  219  for 
Jackson,  49  for  Clay,  1 1  for  Floyd,  and  7  for  Wirt,  and, 
for  Vice-President,  189  for  Van  Buren,  30  for  William 
Wilkins,  of  Pennsylvania,  49  for  Sergeant,  1 1  for  Lee, 
and  7  for  Ellmaker.     Jackson  and  Van  Buren  were 
therefore  declared  elected.     March  2d,  1833,  Congress 
adjourned,  and  March  4th   Jackson  and   Van  Buren 
were  sworn  into  office. 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

TWELFTH  ADMINISTRATION,  1833-1837. 

Andrew  Jackson,  President.          Martin  Van  Buren,  Vice-President 
XXIIId  and  XXIVth  Congresses. 

Popular  vote  for  President  in  1832  :    Jackson  (Dem.) 
687,502,  Clay  (Nat.  Rep.)  530,189. 

1.  THE  Adi  of  1816,  which  created  the  Bank  of 
the   United  States,  required    that   the  public  moneys 
should  be  deposited  in  it,  subject  to  removal  at  any 
time  on  the  order  of  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury,  with 
the  proviso  that  the  Secretary  should  afterwards  give 
Congress  his  reasons  for  such  removal.     At  the  last 
Session  the  President  had  recommended  Congress  to 
order  the  removal  of  the  deposits  from  the  Bank,  and 
Congress,  by  large    majorities,  had  refused  to   do  so. 
The  President,  taking  his  re-election  as  a  popular  ap- 
proval of  his  war  upon  the  Bank,  now  determined  to 
assume  the  responsibility  of  removal  himself. 

2.  With  this  view  he  removed  (in  the  Spring  of  1833) 
the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury,  who  would  not  consent 
to   remove   the   deposits,   and   appointed   William   J. 

"5 


1 1 6  A  merican  Politics.  [ !  8  3  3 

Uuane,  of  Pennsylvania,  in  his  place.  He  proved  to 
be  no  more  compliant  than  his  predecessor.  Aftei 
many  attempts  to  persuade  him,  the  President  an- 
nounced to  the  Cabinet  his  final  decision  that  the  de- 
posits must  be  removed.  The  Reasons  given  were 
that  the  law  gave  the  Secretary,  not  Congress,  control 
of  the  deposits,  that  it  was  improper  to  leave  them 
longer  in  a  bank  whose  charter  would  so  soon  expire, 
that  the  Bank's  funds  had  been  largely  used  for  polit- 
ical purposes,  that  its  inability  to  pay  all  its  depositors 
had  been  shown  by  its  efforts  to  procure  an  extension 
of  time  from  its  creditors  in  Europe,  and  that  its  four. 
Government  directors  had  been  systematically  kept 
from  knowledge  of  its  management.  Secretary  Duane 
refused  either  to  remove  the  deposits  or  to  resign  his 
office,  and  pronounced  the  proposed  removal  unneces- 
sary, unwise,  vindictive,  arbitrary,  and  unjust.  He  was 
at  once  removed  from  office,  and  Roger  B.  Taney,  of 
Maryland,  appointed  in  his  place. 

3.  The  necessary  Orders  for  Removal  were  given 
by  Secretary  Taney.  It  was  not  strictly  a  removal,  for 
all  previous  deposits  were  left  in  the  Bank,  to  be  drawn 
upon  until  exhausted.  It  was  rather  a  cessation.  The 
deposits  were  afterwards  made  in  various  State  banks,1 
and  the  Bank  of  the  United  States  was  compelled  to 
call  in  its  loans.  The  commercial  distress  which  fol- 
lowed in  consequence  probably  strengthened  the  Presi- 
dent in  the  end  by  giving  a  convincing  proof  of  the 
Bank's  power  as  an  antagonist  to  the  Government. 

1  Commonly  called  the  "pet  banks." 


1 8  3  3  •]  Censure  of  the  President.  1 1.7 

4.  Congress  met  December  2d,  1833.     In  the  Sen- 
XXIIId  Congress,     ate   the   still    existing  alliance 

ist  Session.  between  the  National  Repub- 

licans and  the  Calhoun  States  Rights  Democracy 
formed  a  majority  against  the  Administration  and  in 
favor  of  the  Bank.  In  the  House  the  strong  Adminis- 
tration majority  was  shown  by  the  re-election  of  Speaker 
Stevenson,  Democrat,  (142—61).  The  President's  Mes- 
sage and  the  report  of  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury 
defended  the  removal  of  the  deposits.  In  the  Senate 
Clay  at  once  introduced  condemnatory  resolutions, 
which  were  debated  for  three  months  and  then  passed. 
The  first  declared  the  reasons  given  for  the  removal  to 
be  unsatisfactory  and  insufficient.  The  second  was 
modified  during  the  debate  into  a  declaration  that  the 
President  by  removing  the  deposits  "  had  assumed 
upon  himself  authority  and  power  not  conferred  by  the 
Constitution  and  laws,  but  in  derogation  of  both."  To 
the  Senate's  Resolution  of  Censure  the  President 
replied  by  a  protest,  on  the  ground  that  it  accused  him 
of  perjury  in  violating  his  oath  of  office,  and  was  thus 
an  indirect  and  illegal  method  of  impeachment,  a  con- 
demnation against  which  he  had  no  opportunity  to  de- 
fend himself.  The  Senate  refused  to  receive  the  pro- 
test or  place  it  upon  record. 

5.  In  the   House  the   President's  Message  was  fol- 
'owed  by  the  appointment  of  a  committee  to  investi 
gate  the  affairs  of  the  Bank.     The  majority  report  com- 
plained that  the  powers  of  the  committee  had  been  so 
restricted   by  the  Bank  that  a  full  investigation  had 


Ii8  American  Politics. 

been  impossible.  The  minority  report  approved  the 
Bank  and  its  management.  In  April  the  House  passed 
resolutions  that  the  Bank  ought  not  to  be  re-chartered, 
and  that  the  deposits  ought  not  to  be  restored.  In 
June  the  Senate  resolution,  condemning  the  reasons  for 
the  removal  of  the  deposits,  came  to  the  House  for 
concurrence,  and  was  tabled.  The  long  struggle  was 
thus  practically  ended  by  the  Success  of  the  Presi- 
dent. The  Bank  of  the  United  States  was  soon  after- 
ward chartered  by  the  State  of  Pennsylvania,  but  no 
longer  had  the  funds  of  the  United  States  at  its  dis- 
posal.1 

6.  Rejections  of  the  President's  Nomina- 
tions by  the  Senate  were  frequent  at  this  Session. 
The  four  Government  Directors  of  the  Bank,  who  had 
joined  the  President  in  attacking  it,  were  renominated 
by  him,  and  rejected.  The  rejected  names  were  again 
sent  to  the  Senate,  and  again  rejected.  No  more  nom- 
inations for  Government  Directors  were  made  at  this 
Session.  Secretary  Taney's  nomination  was  not  sent 
to  the  Senate  until  June,  1834,  and  was  then  rejected. 
Speaker  Stevenson's  nomination  to  be  Minister  to  En- 
gland was  also  rejected.  An  unsuccessful  attempt  was 
made  to  limit  the  President's  appointing  power,  and 
his  appointments  to  office  for  political  reasons  were 
severely  condemned  by  the  Senate.  A  committee  of 

1  These  were  at  first  deposited  in  various  State  banks.  In  the  Session  of 
'834-35  the  "  Sub-Treasury  plan "  was  suggested  by  the  Opposition,  and 
voted  down  by  the  Democrats.  Later,  it  was  adopted  by  the  Democrats,  and 
made  law  against  the  Whig  efforts  to  revive  a  National  Bank.  It  has  since 
remained  in  force. 


1 8  3  4.  ]  The  Su b -  Treasu  ry  Pla n.  119 

the  House  investigated  the  Post  Office  Depart- 
ment at  this  Session,  and  reported  that  it  had  been 
managed  without  frugality,  system,  intelligence,  or  ade- 
quate public  utility.  As  the  investigating  committee 
was  composed  of  supporters  of  the  Administration,  their 
report  was  decisive,  A  bill  for  reforming  the  Post 
Office  Department  was  introduced  and  passed.  Con- 
gress adjourned  June  3Oth,  1834. 

7.  Congress  met   December   ist,  1834.     There  was 
XXIIId  Congress,     little  party  contest  at  this  Ses- 

2d  Session.  sion.      Further    appropriations 

were  made  for  Internal  Improvements.  Regula- 
tions were  made  to  govern  the  deposit  of  public  moneys 
in  State  banks.  This  system  of  deposit,  called  the 
State  Bank  System,  still  received  the  support  of 
the  Democrats.  The  Opposition  proposed  at  this  Ses- 
sion the  system  afterwards  known  as  the  "  Sub-Treas- 
ury plan,"  by  which  agents  of  the  United  States  Treas- 
ury were  to  be  appointed,  wherever  necessary,  to  re- 
ceive and  disburse  United  States  revenue,  giving  suita- 
ble bonds  for  the  performance  of  their  duties.  The 
Sub-Treasury  plan  was  voted  down.  Congress  ad- 
journed March  3d,  1835. 

8.  The  President  wished  Vice-President  Van   Buren 
to  be  his  successor.      He  therefore  recommended  that 
the  Democratic  nomination  should  be  made  in   Na- 
tional Convention.     This  was  opposed  by  the  friends 
of  the  other  Democratic  candidate,  Hugh  L.  White,  of 
Tennessee,  who  had  been  nominated  by  the  Alabama 
Legislature      The  convention,  which  met  at  Baltimore 


I2O  American  Politics.  [1835. 

in  May,  1835,  was  attended  only  by  Van  Buren  delegates, 
It  nominated  Martin  Van  Buren,  of  New  York,  and 
Richard  M.  Johnson,  of  Kentucky,  and  adopted  no 
platform.  The  friends  of  White  supported  John  Tyler, 
of  Virginia,  tor  Vice-President.  The  National  Repub- 
licans had  by  this  time  generally  adopted  the  name  of 
"Whigs.1  They  generally  supported  the  candidates 
nominated  by  the  Whig  and  Anti-Masonic  State  Con- 
ventions of  Pennsylvania,  William  H.  Harrison,  of 
Ohio,  and  Francis  Granger,  of  New  York.  John  Mc- 
Lean, of  Ohio,  and  Daniel  Webster,  of  Massachusetts, 
were  also  nominated  for  the  Presidency  by  the  Legisla- 
ture of  those  States.  All  these  nominations,  hov/ever 
were  made  over  a  year  before  the  Presidential  election 
took  place. 

9.  Congress  met   December  ytb,  1835.     In  the  Sen- 
XXIVth  Congress,     ate  the  Opposition,  composed 
ist  Session.  of  Whigs,  Nullification  Dem- 

ocrats, and  Anti-Masons,  were  at  first  a  majority,  but 
the  Administration  gained  a  majority  toward  the  end 
of  the  Session.  In  the  House  there  was  a  strong  Ad- 
ministration majority,  divided  into  Van  Buren  and 
White  factions.  James  K.  Polk,  of  Tennessee,  a  Dem- 
ocrat, was  chosen  Speaker.  The  President's  Message 
announced  that  the  National  Debt  would  soon  be  paid 
off.  The  expected  Surplus  of  Revenue  caused 
long  debate  in  Congress.  In  June,  1836,  an  Act  was 

1  The  name  seems  to  have  been  first  used  by  them  in  New  York  in  the 
Winter  of  1834-35.  The  name  "Loco-foco"  was  at  the  same  time  given  to 
the  Democrats  by  the  Whigs. 


1836.]  The  Specie  Circular.  121 

passed  providing  that,  after  January  ist,  1837,  all  sur- 
plus revenue  exceeding  $5,000,000  should  be  divided 
among  the  States  as  a  loan,  only  to  be  recalled  by  di- 
rection of  Congress.1  The  President  signed  the  bill. 
June  1 5th,  1836,  Arkansas  became  a  State,  aftei 
some  opposition  to  its  application  as  irregular.  Con- 
gress adjourned  July  4th,  1836. 

10.  After  the  fall  of  the  United  States  Bank  a  num- 
ber of  State  banks  had  been  formed,  often  without  ade- 
quate capital,  to  supply  the   expected   need   of  paper 
money.     Their  notes  were  used  in  large  quantities  for 
the  purchase  of  public  lands  from  the  United  States, 
and   the  Treasury  was   thus  accumulating  paper  cur- 
rency of  doubtful  worth.     Soon  after  the  adjournment 
of  Congress  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury,  by  direction 
of  the  President,  issued  the  so-called   Specie  Circu- 
lar, ordering  United  States  agents  to  receive  in  future 
only  gold  and  silver  in  payment  for  lands.     This  caused 
a  demand  for  specie  which  could  only  be  met  by  the 
banks    in   which    the  revenue   was   deposited.     Other 
banks   fell   into    difficulties   which    culminated   in  the 
"Panic  of  1837." 

11.  The  Opposition  had  hoped  to  throw  the  Presi- 
dential Election  of  1836  into  the  House,  but  did 
not  succeed  in  doing  so,  for  a  majority  of  Van  Buren 
electors  were  chosen.     The  White  electors  carried  the 
States  of  Georgia  and  Tennessee.     The  Whig  vote  was 
largely  increased  since  the  last  election. 

1  This  distribution  amounted  to  $28,000,0x20,  none  of  which  was  ever  r*« 
tailed.     It  ceased  in  1837  (p.  127). 


122  American  Politics. 

12.  Congress  met   December  5th,   1836.      January 
XXIVth  Congress,     26th,    1837,    Michigan    be- 
ad Session.  came  a  State  of  the  Union. 

In  the  Senate  this  Session  was  noteworthy  for  the  final 
success  of  the  President's  supporters.  When  Clay's 
Resolution  of  Censure,  against  which  the  President  had 
protested,  was  passed,  Senator  Benton,  of  Missouri,  had 
given  notice  that  he  would  offer  a  resolution  each  year 
to  expunge  it.  At  this  Session  his  resolution  was 
carried  and  put  into  effect  at  once.1 

13.  Texas,   which   had  been  bargained  away  by 
Southern  votes  in   1819,  was  now  a  prize  which  the 
South  longed  to  regain,  as  an  offset  to  the  rapidly  mul- 
tiplying Northern  States.     It  had  become  a  part  of  the 
Mexican   State  of  Coahuila,  had  been  colonized  by 
Americans,  and  had  declared  its  independence.     The 
President's  Message  advised  Congress  not  to  interfere 
in  the  struggle  between  Mexico  and  Texas.     Never- 
theless a  resolution  recognizing  the  independence  of 
Texas   was  passed   by  the  Senate,   but  failed  in  the 
House. 

14.  In  1833  the  National  Anti-Slavery  Society 
had  been  formed,  and  its  branches  multiplied  rapidly. 
The   renewal    of    the    Slavery    question    alarmed    the 
Southern  States  and  many  of  the   Northern  people, 
who  considered  any  attack  upon  Slavery  dangerous  to 
the  peace  of  the  Union.       From  this  time  dates  the 

1  The  Resolution  of  1834  on  the  Senate  Journal  was  marked  around  by 
broad  black  lines,  with  the  inscription  "Expunged  by  order  of  the  Senate 
this  i6th  day  of  January,  1837." 


1837-1  Slavery.  123 

existence  of  the  party  opposed  to  Slavery  in  the  United 
States,  at  first  known  as  Abolitionists.  A  requisi- 
tion was  made  by  Georgia  upon  the  State  of  New 
York  for  a  leading  Abolitionist,  who  had  been  indicted 
by  a  Georgia  jury,  and  rewards  were  offered  by  citizens' 
committees  in  the  South  for  the  bodies  of  others,  dead 
or  alive,  but  without  success.  Finally  mob  violence 
was  resorted  to  in  Boston  and  other  Northern  cities,  to 
destroy  Abolition  printing  presses,  break  up  Abolition 
meetings,  and  intimidate  Abolition  orators.  At  least 
one  person  (Lovejoy)  was  shot  to  death. 

15.  These  lawless  outrages  only  increased  the  zeal 
of  the  Abolitionists  in  offering   Petitions  to  Con- 
gress to  abolish  Slavery  in  the  District  of  Columbia, 
and  in  sending  Abolitionist  books  and  papers  to  every 
part  of  the  country.     At  its  last  Session   the  House 
had  resolved  to  lay  all  future  petitions  on  the  subject 
of   Slavery  upon  the  table,  without  further  action  or 
notice.     At  this  Session  the  President's  Message  made 
indignant  reference  to  the  practice  of  sending  Abolition 
documents    through    the    United    States    mails.       He 
recommended  a  bill  to  prohibit  the  practice  in  future. 
A  bill  was  consequently  introduced  in  the  Senate,  pro- 
hibiting any  postmaster  from  knowingly  putting  any 
Abolition   newspapers   or   documents  into  the  mails. 
The  bill  was  rejected. 

1 6.  In    February,    1837,   the    electoral   votes    were 
counted,  and  were  found  to  be,  for  President,  170  for 
Van   Buren,   73   for   Harrison,   26   for  White,    14   for 
Webster,  and  1 1  for  W7.  P.  Mangum,  of  North  Caro- 


124  American  Politics. 

Una,  and,  for  Vice-President,  147  for  Johnson,  77  for 
Granger,  47  for  Tyler,  and  23  for  William  Smith,  of 
Alabama.1  Van  Buren  was  therefore  declared  elect- 
ed President.  No  candidate  having  received  a  ma- 
jority of  all  the  votes  for  Vice-President,  the  Senate 
chose  Richard  M.  Johnson.  President  Jackson 
issued  a  Farewell  Address  to  the  American  People 
before  leaving  office.  March  3d,  1837,  Congress  ad- 
journed, and  March  4th  Van  Buren  and  Johnson  were 
sworn  into  office. 

1  The  three  votes  of  Michigan  for  Van  Buren  and  Johnson  are  included  in 
the  above  count,  though  the  State  was  not  fully  admitted  until  after  ins  elec- 
tion. They  did  not  aflect  the  result 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

THIRTEENTH  ADMINISTRATION, 

Martin  Van  Buren,  President.    Richard  M.Johnson,  Vice-President. 
XXVth  and  XXVIth  Congresses. 

Popular  vote  for  President  in    1836:    Dem.    761,549, 
Combined  Opposition  736,656. 

i.  The  New  Administration  had  taken  Jack- 
son's Cabinet,  and  the  President  had  declared  his  in- 
tention "  to  follow  in  the  footsteps  of  his  illustrious 
predecessor."  He  therefore  caught  the  first  full  effects 
of  the  storm  produced  by  Jackson's  financial  policy, 
from  which  even  Jackson's  popularity  and  admitted 
honesty  would  hardly  have  saved  him.  The  excessive 
amount  of  paper  money  in  circulation  had  encouraged 
reckless  speculation,  and  nominally  raised  property  to 
more  than  its  real  value.  The  Specie  Circular  of  1836," 
by  reviving  the  demand  for  gold  and  silver,  had  de- 
stroyed most  of  the  banks  which  had  not  Government 
deposits  at  command.  The  demand  for  the  deposits, 
for  distribution  among  the  States,  completed  the  ruin 
of  many  of  the  "pet  banks."  They  had  treated  the 


126  American  Politics. 

deposits  as  capital,  to  be  used  in  loans  to  business  men, 
and  now  had  to  return  them. 

2.  The  sudden  calling  in  of  these  loans  began  the 
Panic  of  1837,  to  which  nothing  comparable  had  be- 
fore been  seen  in  America.     Early  in   May  the  New 
York  City  banks  refused  to  pay  gold  or  silver  for  their 
notes,  and  the  New  York  Legislature  authorized  a  sus- 
pension of  specie  payments  throughout    the  State  for 
one  year.     Banks  in  other  cities  at  once  suspended. 
May  1 5th,  the    President,  by   Proclamation,  called  an 
Extra  Session  of  Congress,  to  meet  September  4th,  and 
consider  and  secure  the  financial  interests  of  the  Gov- 
ernment.    During  the  summer  of  1837  tne  Panic  con- 
tinued  its    course,  wrecking   banks    and   corporations, 
bankrupting  business  men,  and  violently  reducing  fic- 
titious fortunes  to  their  real  value. 

3.  Congress  met  September  4th,  1837.     In  the  Sen- 
XXVth  Congress,     ate  there  was  an  Administra- 

Extra  Session,  tion  majority.  In  the  House 
James  K.  Polk,  of  Tennessee,  a  Democrat,  was  re- 
elected  Speaker,  though  the  vote  (116—103)  shows  a 
great  increase  of  Whig  members.  Most  of  the  Calhoun 
Democracy  were  now  supporting  the  Administration. 
The  President's  Message  recommended  that  Gov- 
ernment should  not  interfere  directly  with  the  Panic, 
believing  that  it  would  finally  right  itself  more  safely 
and  easily.  He  also  recommended  the  adoption  by 
the  Government  of  the  "  Sub-Treasury  plan."1  This 
was  regarded  by  the  Whigs,  and  by  some  of  the  Dem- 

1  See  page  119.     It  is  otherwise  called  the  "Independent  Treasury  plan." 


1 8  3  7 .  ]  The  Sub-  Treasu  ry  Bill.  127 

ocrats,  as  an  endeavor  to  break  down  all  the  banks  in 
the  country.  Its  Democratic  opponents  formed  a  tem- 
porary party,  calling  themselves  Conservatives,  and 
generally  voting  with  the  Whigs  on  financial  matters. 
A  bill  for  the  establishment  of  an  Independent  Treasury 
passed  the  Senate,  but  was  tabled  in  the  House  by  a 
combination  of  Whigs  and  Conservatives.  Acts  were 
passed  to  cease  the  distribution  of  revenue  among  the 
States,  to  authorize  the  issue  of  $10,000,000  in  Treas- 
ury notes,  and  to  give  merchants  further  time  on  their 
revenue  bonds.  Congress  adjourned  October  i6th. 

4.  Congress  met   December    4th,   1837.     The    bill 
XXVth  Congress,     for  the  establishment  of  an  In- 

ist  Session.  dependent    Treasury   was 

again  pressed  upon  Congress  by  the  Administration. 
It  passed  the  Senate  by  a  small  majority,  and  was  again 
defeated  in  the  House  by  a  Union  of  Whigs  and  Con- 
servatives. The  only  measure  for  the  relief  of  busi- 
ness passed  at  this  Session  was  a  joint  resolution  direct- 
ing the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury  to  receive  the  notes 
of  specie  paying  banks  in  payment  for  public  lands, 
thus  annulling  the  Specie  Circular.  The  first  open  at- 
tempt to  unite  Texas  to  the  United  States  was  made  at 
this  Session,  but  failed.  Congress  adjourned  July  9th, 
1838. 

5.  Congress  met   December  3d,  1838.     There  was 
XXVth  Congress,     little  party  contest  at  this  Ses- 

2d   Session.  sion.     Discussion  was  confined 

mainly  to  the  Seminole  War  in  Florida,  for  whose  pros- 
ecution large  amounts  had  been  voted,  with  little  ar> 


128  American  Politics. 

parent  prospect  of  a  successful  termination.  The  ap- 
parent disinclination  of  Congress  and  the  Administra- 
tion to  interfere  in  the  financial  troubles  of  the  country, 
while  it  agreed  with  the  strict  constructionist  theory  of 
the  powers  of  the  Federal  Government,  operated  to  the 
disadvantage  of  the  Democratic  party.  Many  of  its 
former  supporters  were  now  ready  to  try  Whig  govern- 
ment. Congress  adjourned  March  3d,  1839. 

6.     Congress  met  December  2d,  1839.     Continuous 
XXVIth  Congress,     Whig  Successes  had  given 
ist  Session.  them  a  fair  prospect  of  a  ma- 

jority, in  the  House.  Outside  of  New  Jersey  119 
Democrats  and  118  Whigs  had  been  returned  to  the 
House.  In  New  Jersey  members  of  the  House  were 
at  that  time  elected  on  a  general  ticket  by  the  whole 
State.  The  five  WThig  candidates  had  certificates  of 
election  under  the  broad  seal  of  the  State,1  while  the 
five  Democratic  candidates  contested  their  election  on 
the  ground  of  a  miscount  in  one  county.  The  admis- 
sion of  either  delegation  would  give  its  party  a  majority 
in  the  House.  For  three  days  a  disorderly  debate  con- 
tinued, there  being  no  presiding  officer  until  December 
5th,  when  John  Quincy  Adams  was  spasmodically 
chosen  chairman  pro  tempore.  Unsucessful  attempts 
to  choose  a  Speaker  were  made  for  two  weeks  longer, 
many  motions  being  voted  upon  by  both  the  New  Jer- 
sey delegations.  December  iyth,  R.  M.  T.  Hunter, 
of  Virginia,  a  Sub-Treasury  Whig,  was  chosen  Speaker. 
The  New  Jersey  Question  was  not  settled  until 

i  Hence  this  contest  is  often  called  the  Broad  Seal  War. 


1840.]         Sub- Treasury  Bill  Passed.  129 

March,  1840,  when  the  Democratic  delegation  was 
seated,  many  Whigs  not  voting  because  of  lack  of  time 
to  examine  the  evidence  in  the  case. 

7.  The  party  contest  over  the  organization  of  the 
House  took  up  so  much  time  that  few  measures  of 
general  interest  were  passed  at  this  Session.     The  most 
notable  event  was  the  final  success  of  the  Independ- 
ent Treasury  Scheme,  which  had  twice  been  re- 
jected by  the  previous   Congress.     It  was  passed  by 
both  Houses,  and  signed  by  the  President.1     The  "  di- 
vorce of  bank  and  state,"  which  the  President  had  been 
laboring  to  accomplish,  was  thus  successful.     The  strict 
constructionist  policy  of  the  President  was  also  success- 
ful in  the  entire  suspension  of  appropriations  for  Inter- 
nal   Improvements.2     Congress    adjourned   July  2ist, 
1840. 

8.  The  Whig  National  Convention  met  at  Har- 
risburgh,   Pa.,  December   4th,    1839.     It   adopted  no 
platform.     For  the  purpose  of  uniting  the  Anti-Ma- 
sonic and  other  opposition  elements  it  reluctantly  aban- 
doned  Clay,  and  nominated  William    H.  Harrison,  of 
Ohio,  and   John   Tyler,   of  Virginia.3     The    Demo- 
cratic   National    Convention   met   at    Baltimore, 

1  It  will  be  seen  that  the  Whigs  at  the  next  Session  made  unsuccessful  at- 
tempts to  substitute  a  National  Bank  for  the  "  Sub-Treasury  plan." 

2  The  tools,  etc.,  belonging  to  the  Government  were  ordered  to  be  sold  at 
auction. 

3  Tyler  was  a  Strict  Constructionist,  a  Calhoun  Democrat,  who  had  refused 
to  follow  the  rest  of  his  faction  in  supporting  the  Administration.     His  nomi- 
nation was  intended  to  gratify  the  Southern  portion  of  the  Opposition  by  an 
office  of  much  honor  and  little  importance 


130  American  Politics.  [1840 

May  5th,  1840,  and  adopted  a  strict  constructionist 
platform,  denying  the  power  of  Congress  to  carry  on 
Internal  Improvements,  to  protect  manufactures,  to 
charter  a  National  Bank,  or  to  interfere  with  Slavery  in 
the  States.  It  unanimously  renominated  the  President, 
but  left  nominations  for  the  Vice-Presidency  to  be 
made  by  the  various  States.  The  Abolitionists,  or 
Liberty  Party,  made  Presidential  nominations  No- 
vember 1 3th,  1839.  The  candidates  were  James  G. 
Birney,  of  New  York,  and  Francis  Lemoyne,  of 
Pennsylvania. 

9.  The   nomination    of  General    Harrison,  and  the 
Whig  attacks  upon  Van  Buren  and  his  financial  policy, 
created  an  enthusiasm  which  Van  Buren's  nomination 
did  not  meet.     Log-cabins  and  hard  cider,  which  were 
supposed  to  be  typical  of  Harrison's  frontier  life,  be- 
came popular  with  the  Whigs,  whose  hopes  were  re- 
newed by  their  success  in  the  State  elections  of  the 
summer   and    fall  of    1840.     At   the    Presidential 
Election  in  November  the  united  opposition  abun- 
dantly gratified  their  personal  hostility  to  Van  Buren. 
The  Whig   electors   were    overwhelmingly    successful. 
Democratic  electors  were  chosen  by  only  two  North- 
ern, and  five  Southern  States.     The  new  Abolition  party 
did  not  succeed  in  choosing   any  electors,  but  polled  a 
popular  vote  of  7,609. 

10.  Congress  met  December  yth,  1840.     There  was 
XXVIth  Congress,     little  party  contest  at  this  Ses- 

2d  Session.  sion.     In  February,  1841,  the 

electoral  votes  were  counted,  and  were  found  to  be,  for 


1841.]  The  Electoral  Votes.  131 

President,  234  for  Harrison,  and  60  for  Vau  Buren,  and, 
for  Vice-President,  234  for  Tyler,  48  for  Richard  M. 
Johnson,  of  Kentucky,  n  for  L.  W.  Tazewell,  of  Vir- 
ginia, and  i  for  James  K.  Polk,  of  Tennessee.  Har- 
rison and  Tyler  were  therefore  declared  elected. 
March  3d,  1841,  Congress  adjourned,  and  March  4th 
Harrison  and  Tyler  were  sworn  into  office. 


CHAPTER  XV. 

FOURTEENTH  ADMINISTRATION,   1841-1845. 

William  Henry  Harrison,  President,       John  Tyler,  Vice-President. 
XXVIIth  and  XXVIIIth  Congresses. 

Popular  vote  for  President  in  1840:    Whig  1,275,017, 
Democratic ',  1,128,702. 

1.  The  President's  Inaugural   Address  con- 
demned any  excessive  use  of  the  veto  power,  the  em- 
ployment for  political  purposes  of  Executive  control 
over  public  officials,  and  all   Presidential   experiments 
upon    the    currency.     March    i7th  the    President,  by 
proclamation,  called  an  Extra  Session  of  Congress,  to 
meet  May  3ist  and  consider  the  financial  difficulties  of 
the  Government.     Before  any  further  developments  of 
the  President's  policy  could  take  place,  a  short  illness 
resulted  in   his   death,  April  4th.     According  to  law, 
John  Tyler  became   President.     He  retained  Presi- 
dent Harrison's  Cabinet,  and  promised  to  carry  out  his 
policy. 

2.  Congress  met  May  3ist,  I84I.1     In   the  House 

*  Senate,  28  Whig,  22  Dem.     House,  133  Whig,  108  Dem. 
I32 


1841.]  President  Tyler's  Vetoes,  133 

XXVIIth  Congress,  John  White,  of  Kentucky,  a 
Extra  Session.  Whig,  was  chosen  Speaker. 
The  Whigs  at  once  began  the  change  in  financial 
policy  to  which  they  were  pledged.  A  bill  to  abolish 
the  Sub-Treasury  of  the  previous  Administration  was 
passed  by  both  Houses  and  signed  by  the  President. 
A  bill  to  incorporate  The  Fiscal  Bank  of  the 
United  States  was  passed  by  both  Houses.  It  was 
weeded  of  many  of  the  objectionable  features  of  the  old 
United  States  Bank,  but  was  hardly  less  odious  to  the 
Democrats.  It  was  vetoed  by  the  President.  His  ob- 
jection was  that  the  powers  given  to  the  Bank  were 
such  as  he  and  the  majority  of  the  people  believed  it  to 
be  unwise  and  unconstitutional  for  Congress  to  grant. 
An  effort  to  pass  the  bill  over  the  veto  did  not  receive 
a  two-thirds  majority. 

3.  The  Whig  leaders,  anxious  to  prevent  a  party  dis- 
aster, asked  from  the  President  an  outline  of  a  bill 
which  he  would  sign.  After  consultation  with  the  Cab- 
inet, it  was  given,  and  passed  by  both  Houses.  Sep- 
tember 9th  the  President  vetoed  this  bill  also,  and  an 
attempt  to  pass  it  over  the  veto  did  not  receive  a  two- 
thirds  majority.  The  action  of  the  President,  in  veto- 
ing a  bill  drawn  according  to  his  own  suggestions,  and 
thus  apparently  provoking  a  contest  with  the  party 
which  had  elected  him,  roused  the  unconcealed  indig- 
nation of  the  Whigs.  The  Cabinet,  with  one  excep- 
tion,1 at  once  resigned.  The  Whig  members  of  Con- 
gress issued  Addresses  to  the  People,  in  which 

1  Daniel  Webster,  of  Massachusetts,  Secretary  of  State. 


J34  American  Politics.  [1841, 

they  detailed  the  reforms  designed  by  the  Whigs  and 
impeded  by  the  President,  and  declared  that  "  all  po- 
litical connection  between  them  and  John  Tyler  was  at 
an  end  from  that  day  forth."  At  this  Session  an  Act 
was  passed  to  distribute  the  proceeds  of  the  sales  of 
public  lands  among  the  States.  Congress  adjourned 
September  131)1,  1841. 

4.  The  President  filled  the  vacancies  in  the  Cabi- 
net by  appointing  Whigs  and  Conservatives.     His  po- 
sition was  one  of  much  difficulty.     His  strict  construc- 
tionist  opinions,  which  had  prevented  him  from  sup- 
porting Van  Buren,  would  not  allow  him  to  approve  a 
National   Bank,  and  yet  he  had  accepted  the  Vice- 
Presidency  from  a  party  pledged  to  establish  one.     The 
over  hasty  declaration  of  war  by  the  Whigs  put  a  stop 
to  his  vacillations,  and  compelled  him  to  rely  upon  sup- 
port from  the  Democrats.     But  only  a  few  members  of 
Congress,  commonly  known  as  "  the  corporal's  guard," 
recognized  Tyler  as  a  leader.     The   Democrats  only 
supported  him  as  a  means  to  success,  and  were  encour- 
aged in  so  doing  by  the  State  elections  of  1841,  which 
were  unfavorable  to  the  Whigs. 

5.  Congress    met    December   6th,  1841.     Although 
XXVIIth  Congress,     Congress  had  decided  to  re- 

ist  Session.  fuse    consideration    to   peti- 

tions for  the  abolition  of  Slavery,  they  continued  to  be 
sent.  John  Quincy  Adams,  of  Massachusetts,  made 
himself  prominent  in  presenting  them  to  the  House, 
and  an  unsuccessful  attempt  was  made  to  censure  him. 
In  March,  1842,  in  the  House,  Giddings,  of  Ohio, 


1842.]  Slavery. — The  Tariff.  135 

presented  a  set  of  resolutions  which  are  noteworthy  as 
containing  the  basis  for  the  subsequent  resistance  to 
the  extension  of  Slavery  to  the  Territories.  They  de- 
clared that  Slavery,  being  an  abridgment  of  the  natural 
rights  of  man,  can  exist  only  by  force  of  positive  munic- 
ipal law,  and  is  necessarily  confined  to  the  territorial 
jurisdiction  of  the  power  creating  it.  For  offering 
these  resolutions  the  House  censured  their  author.  He 
resigned  his  seat,  was  re-elected  at  a  special  election  in 
April,  and  again  took  his  seat  in  the  House  early  in 
May. 

6.  The  reduction  of  duties  by  the  Compromise  Tariff 
of  1833  had  gone  so  far  that  the  Government  revenues 
were  less  than  expenses.  A  new  tariff  became  neces- 
sary and  this  brought  on  the  struggle  between  Strict 
Construction  ists  and  I^oose  Constructionists.  The 
Whig  majority  passed  a  bill  continuing  for  the  present 
the  duties  under  the  Tariff  of  1833,  and  providing  for 
the  distribution  of  any  surplus  revenue  among  the  States. 
The  President  vetoed  it,  on  the  ground  that  it  was  in 
violation  of  the  Compromise  of  1833  by  which  Protec- 
tion was  to  cease  after  1842.  A  Tariff  designed  to  afford 
a  revenue  was  then  passed  by  both  Houses,  still  con- 
tinuing the  objectionable  provision  for  the  distribution 
of  the  surplus.  This  was  also  vetoed.  In  the  House 
the  Veto  Message  was  referred  to  a  committee,  whose 
report  condemned  the  President's  undue  assumption  of 
power.  Against  this  the  President  sent  a  formal  pro? 
test.  The  bill  was  then  passed  by  both  Houses,  with- 
out the  distributing  clause,  signed  by  the  President,  and 


136  American  Politics.  [1842. 

became  the  Tariff  of  1842.  The  distributing  clause 
AV;IS  j ussed  as  a  separate  bill,  and  disposed  of  by  a 
"pocket  veto."  Congress  adjourned  August  3ist, 
1842. 

7.  Congress  met  December  5th,  1842.     There  was 
XXVIIth    Congress,     little   party   contest   at  this 

2d  Session.  Session.     On  its  last  day  a 

few  Anti-Slavery  Whigs  issued  an  address  to  the  people, 
warning  them  that  the  scheme  for  the  annexation  of 
Texas  had  never  been  abandoned,  but  was  still  in 
progress,  and  that  its  success  would  result  in  and  justify 
a  dissolution  of  the  Union.  Congress  adjourned  March 

3d»  l843- 

8.  Congress    met    December    4th,    1843.     In    the 
XXVIIIth  Congress,     House  John   W.  Jones,  of 

ist  Session.  Virginia,  a   Democrat,  was 

chosen  Speaker.  The  majority  in  the  Senate  was  Whig, 
and  in  the  House  Democratic,1  and  the  consequent 
disagreement  prevented  united  action,  and  encouraged 
the  President  in  his  reliance  upon  the  Democrats.  The 
President's  Message  had  recommended  that  any 
appropriations  for  Internal  Improvements  should  be 
made  for  the  benefit  of  the  Western  States.  Two  bills 
were  passed,  the  Eastern  Harbor  Bill,  and  the  Western 
Harbor  Bill.  The  President  signed  the  Western  Bill, 
and  vetoed  the  Eastern  Bill.  An  attempt  to  pass  it 
over  the  veto  did  not  receive  a  two-thirds  majority. 
The  Administration  concluded  a  treaty  with  Texas,  pro- 
viding for  annexation.  It  was  rejected  by  the  Senate 

1  Senate,  28  Whig,  24  Dem.     House,  142  Dem.,  81  Whig. 


1 844.]      Texas. — National  Conventions.  133* 

by  a  strong  vote  (35-16),  all  the  Whigs  and  7  Demo- 
crats voting  against  it.  Congress  adjourned  June  lyth, 
1844. 

9.  The  Annexation  of  Texas  was  now  rapidly 
becoming  a  party  question.     The  South  was  determined 
to  accomplish  it.     It  was  felt  that  if  the  South  must 
stop  at  the  Sabine  (the  Eastern  boundary  of  Texas), 
while  the  North  might  spread  unchecked  beyond  the 
Rocky  Mountains,  "  the  Southern  scale  must  kick  the 
beam,"  and  the  existence  of  Slavery  would  be  endan- 
gered.    Before    the    National    Conventions   met   the 
views  of  the  leading  candidates  upon  the  question  of 
annexation   had  been  asked   and  given.     Van  Buren 
guardedly  announced  himself  as  opposed  to  the  present 
annexation  of  Texas.     Clay  expressed  himself  more 
plainly  to  the  same  effect. 

10.  The  National  Convention  of  the  Liberty  Party 
met  at  Buffalo,  August  3oth,  1843.     It  adopted  a  long 
series  of  resolutions,  denouncing    Slavery,  and  calling 
upon  the  Free  States  for  penal  laws  to  stop  the  return 
of  fugitive  slaves.     It  nominated  James  G.  Birney,  of 
Michigan,  and  Thomas  Morris,  of  Ohio.     The  Whig 
National  Convention   met  at   Baltimore,  May  ist, 
1844,  and  adopted  a  concise  loose  constructionist  plat- 
form, advocating  a  national  currency,  a  protective  tariff, 
and  a  distribution  of  surplus  revenue  among  the  States. 
It  nominated  Henry  Clay,  of  Kentucky,  and  Theodore 
Frelinghuysen,  of  New  York.     The  Democratic  Na- 
tional   Convention   met   at   Baltimore,  May  2yth, 
1844,  and  again  adopted  its  strict  constructionist  plat- 


138  American  Politics.  [1844. 

form  of  1840,  with  an  additional  article  demanding 
the  re -occupation  of  Oregon,  and  the  re-annexation  of 
Texas.  A  large  majority  of  the  delegates  came  pledged 
to  vote  for  Van  Buren,  whose  views  on  the  Texas 
question  did  not  satisfy  the  Southern  delegates.  They 
succeeded  in  destroying  his  chances  of  a  nomination 
by  the  adoption  of  the  rule  of  two  former  Democratic 
Conventions,  that  nominations  must  be  made  by  a  two- 
thirds  vote.1  Van  Buren  had  a  majority,  but  not  two- 
thirds.  After  eight  ballots  his  name  was  withdrawn, 
and  the  Convention  nominated  James  K.  Polk,  of 
Tennessee,  and  Silas  Wright,  of  New  York.  Wright 
declined,  and  George  M.  Dallas,  of  Pennsylvania,  was 
substituted.  An  abortive  Convention  of  office-holders 
at  Baltimore  renominated  Tyler.  He  accepted  the 
nomination  but  soon  withdrew. 

ii.  The  Democratic  party  was  thus  committed  to 
the  annexation  of  Texas,  though  the  demand  for  the 
Tariff  of  1842,  and  for  "  the  whole  of  Oregon  or  none, 
with  or  without  war  with  England"  helped  to  gain 
votes.  Nevertheless  Whig  success  seemed  probable 
until  the  appearance  of  an  unfortunate  letter  of  Clay's, 
in  which  he  tried  to  conciliate  Southern  Democrats  by 
saying  that  he  would  be  "  glad  to  see  "  the  annexation 
take  place  at  some  future  time.  By  this  ill-judged 
piece  of  diplomacy  he  gained  no  Democratic  votes,  for 
Polk  was  a  warm  advocate  of  annexation,  and  lost 
those  of  the  extreme  Anti-Slavery  Whigs  and  Aboli- 
tionists, who  purposely  threw  away  on  Birney  and 

1  This  has  since  been  the  rule  in  Democratic  National  Conventions. 


1 844.]  Presidential  Election.  139 

Morris  a  number  of  votes  which  would  have  carried 
New  York  and-  thus  elected  Clay.  They  were  there- 
fore the  real  agents  in  the  election  of  Polk,  the  annexa- 
tion of  Texas,  and  the  extension  of  Slavery  to  a  vast 
amount  of  new  territory. 

12.  The  Presidential  Election  in  November  re- 
sulted in    Democratic  success.     But  it  was  the  most 
closely  contested  election  in  our  history,  except  those 
of  1800  and  1876.     The  result  in  14  of  the  26  States 
was  doubtful  for  two  days,  and  most  of  these  chose 
Polk  electors  by  very  slender  majorities.     In  several  of 
them  the  small  Abolition  vote  would  have  turned  the 
scale,  and   chosen    Clay  electors.     A   majority  of  the 
members  chosen  to  the  XXI Xth  Congress  were  in  favor 
of  the  low  Tariff  of  1842. 

13.  Congress  met  December  2d,  1844.     A  bill  to  or- 
XXVIIIth  Congress,     ganize  a  territorial  govern- 

2d  Session.  ment  for  Oregon,  up  to  the 

line  of  54°  40'  North  latitude,  and  beyond  the  line 
claimed  by  England  as  the  true  boundary,  was  passed 
by  the  House,  but,  as  it  prohibited  Slavery,  the  Senate 
declined  to  consider  it.  The  annexation  of  Texas 
took  up  most  of  the  time  of  this  Session.  Mexico  had 
abolished  Slavery  twenty  years  before,  and  therefore 
Texas  was  by  Mexican  law  free  territory.1  Proposi- 
tions to  prohibit  Slavery  in  Texas  were  voted  down. 
The  Joint  Resolution  to  annex  Texas  was  passed  by 
both  Houses,  and  signed  by  the  President.  It  pro- 
hibited Slavery  in  any  States  to  be  formed  from  the  ter- 

1  The  Republic  of  Texas,  however,  had  re-established  Slavery  by  law. 


140  American  Politics. 

ritory  of  Texas  north  of  the  Missouri  Compromise  Line 
(36°  30'  North  latitude),  and  left  the  question  to  be 
settled  by  the  people  in  States  formed  south  of  that  line. 
14.  Appropriations  were  made  at  this  Session  for  both 
Eastern  and  Western  harbors.  The  President  disposed 
of  them  by  a  pocket  veto.  In  February,  1845,  the 
electoral  votes  were  counted  and  were  found  to  be,  for 
Polk  and  Dallas  170,  and  for  Clay  and  Frelinghuysen 
105.  Polk  and  Dallas  were  therefore  declared 
elected.  March  3d,  Florida  became  a  State  of  the 
Union,  and  arrangements  were  made  for  the  future  ad- 
mission of  Iowa.  The  same  day  the  President  sent  a 
messenger  to  secure  the  consent  of  Texas  to  the  an- 
nexation. March  3d,  1845,  Congress  adjourned,  and 
March  4th  Polk  and  Dallas  were  sworn  into  office. 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

FIFTEENTH  ADMINISTRATION,   1845-1849. 

James  K.  Polk,  President.  George  M.  Dallas,  Vice-President. 

XXIXth  and  XXXth  Congresses. 

Popular  vole  for  President  in    1844:    Dem.  1,337,243, 
Whig  1,299,068,  Ab.  62,300. 

1.  THE  policy  of  Rotation  in  Office,  laid  down 
by  Jackson   in    1829  and   accepted   by  the  Whigs  in 
1841,  was  now  finally  established  by  the  new  Adminis- 
tration.    It  has  been  the  rule  since  that  time  that  every 
Presidential   election  shall  be  marked  by  a  wholesale 
removal  of  office-holders,  whose  places  are  filled  by 
friends  of  the  new  Administration. 

2.  Annexation  had  been  accepted  by  the  Congress 
of  Texas  and  by  a  Popular  Convention.     Mexico  was 
so  occupied  by  intestine  dissensions  and  revolution  that 
her  exhibition  of  resentment  was  at  first  confined  to  a 
formal  protest,  and  the  withdrawal  of  her  Minister  from 
Washington.     No  aggressive  movement  was  made  by 
her  even  when   United  States    troops   under   General 
Taylor  occupied  the  Eastern  bank  of  the  Nueces  River, 

141 


142  American  Politics.  [1845. 

beyond  which  Texas  had  never  hitherto  exercised  juris- 
diction. 

3.  Congress     met     December     ist,    1845,    with    a 
XXIXth   Congress,     Democratic  majority  in  both 

ist  Session.  branches.1      In     the     House 

John  W.  Davis,  of  Indiana,  a  Democrat,  was  chosen 
Speaker.  The  President's  Message  condemned  all 
Anti-Slavery  agitation,  recommended  a  Sub-Treasury 
and  a  Tariff  for  Revenue,  and  spoke  of  the  annexation 
of  Texas  as  a  matter  which  concerned  only  Texas  and 
the  United  States.  December  29th  Texas  became  a 
State  of  the  Union.  December  3 ist  an  Act  was  passed 
extending  the  United  States  revenue  system  over  the 
doubtful  territory  beyond  the  Nueces  River,  and  a 
revenue  officer  was  appointed  to  reside  in  the  new  dis- 
trict. Even  these  steps  did  not  induce  hostilities. 
Mexico  still  declared  her  willingness  to  negotiate  con- 
cerning the  disputed  territory  between  the  Nueces  and 
the  Rio  Grande. 

4.  In   March,  1846,  Hostilities   were  precipitated 
by  an  order  from  the  President  to  General  Taylor  to 
advance  from  the  Nueces  to  the  Rio  Grande,  and  oc- 
cupy the  debatable  district.     He  obeyed,  and  was  thus 
brought  face  to  face  with  Mexican  troops.     Early  in 
May   Arista,  with    6,000    Mexicans,   crossed   the    Rio 
Grande,  attacked  Taylor  and  his  force  of  2,300  men 
at  Palo  Alto,  and  was  badly  beaten.     On  the  following 
day  Taylor  assumed  the  offensive,  attacked  Arista  at 
Resaca  de  la  Palma,  and  drove  him  in  headlong  re- 
treat across  the  Rio  Grande. 

1  Senate,  30  Dem.,  25  Whig.     House,  142  Dem.,  75  Whig,  and  6  others. 


1846.]  War  with  Mexico.  143 

5.  May  nth,  1846,  the  President  sent  a  War  Mes- 
sage to  Congress  in  which  he  detailed  the  preliminary 
skirmishes  on  the   Rio  Grande,  declared  that  Mexican 
troops  had  at  last  shed  the  blood  of  American  citizens 
on  American  soil,  and  asked  for  a  Declaration  of  War. 
A  bill  to  recognize  the  existence  of  war,  and  to  appro- 
priate   $10,000,000    for  its    prosecution,  was    at   once 
passed  by  both  Houses.     Its  preamble  was  as  follows : 
"  Whereas,  by  the  act  of  the  Republic  of  Mexico,  a 
state  of  war  exists  between  that  government  and  the 
United  States."     This  was  considered  a  falsehood  by 
the  Whigs.     They  thought   that  President   Polk  had 
provoked  hostilities  by  ordering  the  army  into  Mex- 
ican territory.     Nevertheless   they  generally  voted,  un- 
der protest,  for  the  declaration,  on  the  ground  that  the 
army  had   been  forced    into  a  perilous  situation,  and 
must  be  rescued.     On  the  same  ground  they  generally 
supported  the  war  until  its  conclusion.     The  Liberty 
party,  particularly  in  New  England,  opposed  the  war 
bitterly.1 

6.  August  8th  a  Special  Message  from  the  President 
asked  for  money  with  which  to  purchase  territory  from 
Mexico,  that  the  war  might  thus  be  settled  by  negotia- 
tion.    A  bill  appropriating  $2,000,000  for  this  purpose 
at  once  brought  up  the  Slavery  question,  for  it  was  cer- 
tain that  any  newly  acquired   territory  would  swarm 
with  slave-holders,  who  would    demand  protection  in 
the  possession  of  their  slaves.     In  the  House  Wilmot, 
of  Pennsylvania,  on  behalf  of  many  Northern   Demo- 

1  Their  feeling  is  represented  by  Lowell's  "Biglow  Papers." 


144  American  Politics.  [1846. 

crats,  offered  an  addition  to  the  bill,  applying  to  any 
newly  acquired  territory  the  provision  of  the  Ordinance 
of  1787,*  that  "neither  Slavery  nor  involuntary  servi- 
tude shall  ever  exist  in  any  part  of  said  territory,  ex- 
cept for  crime,  whereof  the  party  shall  first  be  duly  con- 
victed." This  was  the  celebrated  Wilmot  Proviso. 
The  Whigs  and  Northern  Democrats  unrted  in  favor 
of  it,  and  it  passed  the  House,  but  was  sent  to  the 
Senate  too  late  to  be  acted  upon. 

7.  During  this  Session  war  with  England  upon  the 
Oregon  Question  seemed  imminent.  By  the  treaties 
of  1803  with  France,  and  1819  with  Spain,  the  United 
States  had  acquired  the  rights  of  those  powers  on  the 
Pacific  coast,  north  of  California.  The  Northern 
boundary  of  the  ceded  territory  was  unsettled.  The 
United  States  claimed  that  the  boundary  was  the  line 
54°  40'  North  latitude.  England  claimed  that  it  fol- 
lowed the  Columbia  River.  By  a  convention  of  1827 
the  disputed  territory  had  been  held  by  both  countries 
jointly,  the  arrangement  being  terminable  by  either 
country  on  twelve  months'  notice.  The  last  Demo- 
cratic Convention  had  demanded  the  "  re-occupation  " 
of  the  whole  of  Oregon  (up  to  54°  40'),  with  or  with- 
out war  with  England.2  The  "  r<?-annexation "  of 
Texas  having  been  accomplished,  the  Whigs  now  be- 
gan to  urge  the  Democrats  to  carry  out  their  pro- 
gramme in  regard  to  Oregon.  Against  the  votes  of 
the  extreme  Southern  Democrats,  the  President  was 

1  See  page  57. 

*  Popularly  summed  up  as  "fifty-four-forty-or-fight  " 


1846.^      Oregon. — The  Tariff  of  1846.  145 

directed  to  give  the  requisite  twelve  months'  notice  to 
England. 

8.  June  1 5th,  1846,  the  Oregon  question  was  settled 
by  a  Treaty  with  England,  by  which  the  United 
States  abandoned  the  line  of  54°  40',  and  accepted 
that  of  49°  North  latitude  as  the  Northern  boundary 
A  bill  to  organize  the  Territory  of  Oregon,  with  the 
Wilmot   Proviso  attached,  was  passed  by  the   House, 
against  the  votes  of  the  Southern  Democrats,  but  was 
not  acted  upon  by  the  Senate. 

9.  At  this  Session  the  Tariff  of  1846  was  passed  by 
a  party  vote.     It    followed    the    strict    constructionist 
theory  in  aiming  at  a  list  of  duties  sufficient  only  to 
provide  revenue  for  the  Government,  without  regard  to 
Protection.     A  River  and  Harbor  Improvement 
Bill  was  passed  by  both  Houses.     It  was  vetoed  by 
the  President  on  the  ground  that  the  Constitution  did 
not,  in  his  opinion,  give  the  Federal  Government  any 
power  to  appropriate  money  for  the  purpose  of  making 
Internal  Improvements  within  the  States.     Congress 
adjourned  August  i3th,  1846. 

10.  Congress  met  December  yth,  1846.     December 
XXIXth  Congress,     28th,  Iowa   became  a   State 

2d  Session.  of  the   Union.     The  Presi- 

dent's Message  announced  the  continued  success 
of  the  American  arms  in  Mexico,  and  argued  that  the 
Rio  Grande  should  be  considered  the  Western  bound- 
ary of  Texas.  The  necessary  measures  for  the  prose- 
cution of  the  war  took  up  most  of  the  time  of  this  Ses- 
sion. A  bill  appropriating  $3,000,000  for  the  purchase 


146  American  Politics.  [1847. 

of  territory  from  Mexico  was  passed  by  the  House 
with  the  Wilmot  Proviso  attached.  The  Senate  passed 
the  bill,  but  without  the  Wilmot  Proviso,  and,  after  un- 
availing struggle  by  the  Whigs,  the  House  adopted  the 
bill  as  it  came  from  the  Senate.  The  bill  to  organize 
the  Territory  of  Oregon,  with  the  Wilmot  Proviso,  wrs 
again  passed  by  the  House,  and  again  left  without  ac- 
tion by  the  Senate.  A  motion  in  the  House  by  a 
Southern  member  to  recognize  the  Missouri  Com- 
promise Line  (36°  30')  as  extending  to  the  Pacific  was 
lost  by  a  sectional  vote,  South  against  North.  A  River 
and  Harbor  Improvement  Bill  was  again  passed  but  so 
near  the  end  of  the  Session  that  the  President  was  able 
to  dispose  of  it  by  a  "pocket  veto."  Congress  ad- 
journed March  3d,  1847. 

ii.  Congress  met  December  6th,  1847,  with  a  Dem- 
XXXth  Congress,  ocratic  majority  in  the  Senate, 
ist  Session.  and  a  Whig  majority  in  the 
House.1  Robert  C.  Winthrop,  of  Massachusetts,  a 
Whig,  was  chosen  Speaker  of  the  House.  The  subject 
of  Internal  Improvements  was  again  brought  up, 
and  the  House  resolved  by  a  large  majority  that  the 
General  Government  had  the  power  to  improve  har- 
bors and  rivers  for  the  advantage  of  commerce  and  for 
the  common  defense.  A  resolution  embodying  the  sub- 
stance of  the  Wilmot  Proviso  was  tabled.  It  did  not 
have,  as  in  the  last  Congress,  the  whole  Free  State 
Democratic  vote  in  its  favor.2 

1  Senate,  35  Dem.,  21  Whig.     House,  117  Whig,  108  Dem. 
f  Twenty-five  Free  State  Democrats  voted  against  it. 


1848.]      Peace. — National  Conventions.  147 

12.  Peace   was  made  with    Mexico  in    February, 
1848,  and  a  large   increase  of  territory  was    thereby 
gained  by  the  United  States.     As  a  compromise  be- 
tween the  advocates  and  the  opponents  of  the  exten- 
sion of  Slavery,  a  bill  was  passed  by  the  Senate,  estab- 
lishing territorial  governments  in  Oregon,  New  Mexico, 
and  California,  with  a  provision  that  all  questions  con- 
cerning Slavery  in  those  Territories  should  be  referred 
to  the  United  States  Supreme  Court  for  decision.     It 
was  voted  for  by  the  members  from  Slave  States,  and 
lost   in  the    House.     A  bill  was  then  passed  in  the 
House,  by  a  sectional  vote,  to  organize  the  Territory 
of  Oregon,  without  Slavery.     This  was  passed  by  the 
Senate,  with  an  amendment  declaring  that  the   Mis- 
souri Compromise  Line  extended  to  the  Pacific  Ocean. 
This  would  have  divided  the   United  States  into  two 
parts,  the  Northern  free,  and  the  Southern  slave.     The 
amendment  was   rejected   by  the    House,  again  by  a 
sectional   vote,  and,  the   Senate   withdrawing,  the  bill 
passed.     Congress  adjourned  August  i4th,  1848.     May 
291)1  Wisconsin  had  become  a  State  of  the  Union. 

13.  The  Democratic  National  Convention  met 
at  Baltimore,  May  22d,  1848.     It   renewed  the  strict 
constructionist  platform  of  1840  and   1844,  and  nomi- 
nated Lewis  Cass,  of  Michigan,  and  William  O.  Butler, 
of   Kentucky.     A    resolution    that    Congress    had   no 
power  to  interfere  with  Slavery,  either  in  the  States  or 
in  the  Territories,  was  voted  down  by  a  heavy  majority. 
The  Whig  National  Convention  met  at  Philadel- 
phia, June    yth,  and   nominated   Zachary   Taylor,  of 


148  American  Politics.  [1848. 

Louisiana,  and  Millard  Fillmore,  of  New  York.  No 
platform  was  adopted,  and  resolutions  affirming  the 
Wilmot  Proviso  as  a  party  principle  were  repeatedly 
voted  down.  It  was  thus  evident  that  the  Whigs  were 
not  ready  to  become  an  Anti-Slavery  party,  nor  were 
the  Democrats  ready  to  become  a  Pro-Slavery  party. 
The  State  of  New  York  had  sent  two  delegations  to  the 
Democratic  Convention,  the  "  Hunkers,"  or  Conserva- 
tives, who  wished  to  leave  the  Slavery  question  in  abey- 
ance, and  the  "  Barnburners,"  1  or  Free  Soil  Democrats, 
who  opposed  any  further  extension  of  Slavery  into  the 
.Territories.  The  Convention  admitted  both,  dividing 
the  vote  of  New  York  between  them.  The  Barn- 
burners withdrew,  and  attended  the  National  Conven- 
tion of  a  new  party,  the  Free  Soilers,  at  Buffalo, 
August  Qth.  It  adopted  a  platform  declaring  that  Con- 
gress had  no  more  power  to  make  a  slave  than  to  make 
a  king,  and  that  there  should  be  no  more  Slave  States, 
and  no  more  Slave  Territories.  It  nominated  Martin 
Van  Buren,  of  New  York,  and  Charles  Francis  Adams, 
of  Massachusetts. 

14.  The  Free  Soilers  (or  Free  Democracy)  were 
joined  by  the  old  Liberty  party,  and  by  many  Demo- 
crats who  were  offended  at  the  support  given  by  South- 
ern Democrats  to  the  efforts  to  establish  Slavery  in  the 
territory  lately  won  from  Mexico.  In  the  South  many 
former  Democrats  preferred  a  slave-holding  candidate 
without  a  platform  to  a  non  slave-holding  candidate 

1  This  was  originally  a  term  applied  by  their  opponents  to  their  supposed 
revolutionary  principles.     It  made  no  charge  of  practical  arson. 


1848.]  Presidential  Election.  149 

on  a  platform  in  which  support  of  Slavery  had  been 
voted  down.  The  Presidential  EledUon  in  No- 
vember resulted  in  the  success  of  the  Whig  electors  in 
a  majority  both  of  the  Free  and  of  the  Slave  States. 
The  belief  of  the  Northern  Democrats  that  they  had 
been  betrayed  by  the  Southern  Democrats  in  the  elec- 
tion had  its  natural  effect  in  the  next  Session  of  Con- 
gress, where  the  Free  State  Democrats  voted  for  every 
measure  aimed  at  Slavery. 

15.  Congress  met  December  5th,  1848.     A  bill  to 
XXXth  Congress,     organize  the  Territories  of  New 
2d  Session.  Mexico  and  California,  with  the 

Wilmot  Proviso,  was  passed  by  the  House  by  a  sec- 
tional vote,  almost  all  the  Free  State  Democrats  voting 
for  it.  The  Senate  refused  to  consider  it.  The  House 
then  passed  a  resolution  condemning  the  sale  of  slaves 
in  Washington  as  "  notoriously  a  reproach  to  our  coun- 
try throughout  Christendom,"  which  roused  the  indig- 
nation of  Southern  members.  Late  in  the  Session  the 
Senate  passed  the  General  Appropriation  Bill  for  gov- 
ernment expenses,  with  a  "  rider," 1  organizing  the 
Territories  of  New  Mexico  and  California, 
permitting  Slavery.  Its  object  was  to  compel  the 
House  to  yield,  or  leave  the  Government  penniless. 
The  House  threw  this  responsibility  back  upon  the 
Senate  by  substituting  for  its  rider  a  provision  that  un- 
til July  4th,  1850,  the  existing  Mexican  laws  of  those 
Territories  should  remain  in  force.  As  Mexico  had 

1  That  is,  an  addition  having  no  reference  to  the  subject  matter  of  the  origi« 
oal  bill. 


150  American  Politics.  [^49 

abolished  Slavery  this  would  have  made  the  new  Ter- 
ritories free.  On  the  last  night  of  the  Session  the  Sen- 
ate unwillingly  struck  out  its  "  rider "  and  the  House 
substitute,  and  passed  the  Appropriation  Bill  as  it  origi- 
nally came  from  the  House. 

1 6.  Another  River  and  Harbor  Improvement  Bill 
was  passed  by  the  House,  but  was  not  acted  upon  by 
the  Senate.  In  February,  1849,  the  electoral  votes 
were  counted  and  were  found  to  be,  for  Taylor  and 
Fillmore  163,  and  for  Cass  and  Butler  127.  Taylor 
and  Fillmore  were  therefore  declared  elected.  March 
3d,  1849,  Congress  adjourned,  and  March  5th  Taylor 
and  Fillmore  were  sworn  into  office. 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

SIXTEENTH  ADMINISTRATION,   1849-1853. 

Zachary  Taylor,  President.  Mlllard  Fillmore,  Vice-President. 

XXXIst  and  XXXIId  Congresses. 

Popular  vote  for  President  in   1848:    Whig  1,360,101, 
Dem.  1,220,544,  Free  Soil  291,263. 

i.  TAYLOR'S  Inauguration  marks  the  beginning  of  a 
Process  of  Change  which  in  a  few  years  destroyed 
one  of  the  two  great  parties,  and  changed  the  character 
of  the  other.  The  Free  Soil  Democrats,  who  opposed 
any  extension  of  Slavery  to  the  Territories,  and  had 
therefore  abandoned  the  Democratic  party,  saw  no 
reason  for  joining  the  Whig  party,  which  had  distinctly 
rejected  the  principle  of  the  Wilmot  Proviso.  The  con- 
sequent loss  of  the  Democrats,  in  numbers,  was  more 
than  balanced  by  the  accession  of  Pro-Slavery  Whigs 
who  made  their  new  party  progressively  more  Pro- 
Slavery.  The  Whig  losses  had  no  compensating  gains. 
The  disintegration  of  the  party  continued  from  its  suc- 
cess in  electing  a  slave-holding  President  in  1848  until 
th'j  u^  gf  its  anti-slavery  successor  in  1855-56. 


152  American  Politics.  [1849. 

2.  The  accession  of  Pro-Slavery  Whigs  soon  brought 
prominently  forward  the  doctrine  which  the  last  Demo- 
cratic National  Convention  had  voted  down,  that  the 
Constitution  gave  Congress  no  power  to  interfere  with 
Slavery  in  the  Territories,  and  that  the  people  of  each 
Territory  should   allow   or   prohibit    Slavery   as   they 
pleased.     This  was   Squatter    Sovereignty.1      Of 
course  it   would   follow  from  this  that  the    Missouri 
Compromise  of  1820  was  illegal  and  unconstitutional, 
as  it  abolished  Slavery  in  the  Territories  North  of  36° 
30'.     But  this  consequence  was  not  at  first  mentioned, 
and,  perhaps,  not  thought  of. 

3.  As  Squatter  Sovereignty  was  a  strict  construction- 
ist  theory,  it  was  more  easy  to  force  it  upon  the  Demo- 
cratic than  upon  the  Whig  party.     From   this  time, 
therefore,  Southern  leaders  aimed  to  control  the  Dem- 
ocratic party  more  thoroughly,  abandoning  its  opponent 
after  an  effort  to  use  it  as  an  instrument  in  completing 
the  work  of  the  Democracy.2     The  struggle  between 
the  advocates  of  the  Wilmot  Proviso,  which  forbade 
Slavery  in  the  new  territory,  and  of  Squatter  Sover- 
eignty, which  allowed  its  introduction,  if  desired  by  the 
people,  was  precipitated  by  the  Discovery  of  Gold 
in  California.      The  consequent  rush  of  immigration 
increased  the  population  of  California  so  rapidly  that  a 
State  constitution  was  formed  June  3d,  1849,  expressly 
prohibiting   Slavery.      This    practical    application    of 
Squatter  Sovereignty  was  equally  surprising   and  un« 
welcome  to  its  first  advocates. 

1  Otherwise  called  Popular  Sovereignty. 

2  At  the  Presidential  Convention  of  1852. 


1850.]  The  Compromise  of  1850.  153 

4.  Congress  met  December  3d,  1849,  with  a  Demo 
XXXIst  Congress,     cratic  majority  in  the  Senate, 

ist  Session.  and  no  party  majority  in  the 

House,  the  Free  Soilers  holding  the  balance  of  power 
between  the  other  two  parties.1  The  Free  Soilers 
refused  to  vote  for  either  the  Whig  or  the  Democratic 
candidates  for  Speaker,  and,  after  62  unavailing  ballots 
in  which  no  one  had  a  majority  of  all  the  votes,  it  was 
agreed  that  the  highest  number  of  votes  should  elect. 
The  House  then  chose  as  Speaker  Howell  Cobb,  of 
Georgia,  a  Democrat  and  an  advocate  of  the  extension 
of  Slavery. 

5.  California  applied  for  admission  as  a  State  Feb- 
ruary 1 3th,  1850.     Shortly  before  the  application  Clay 
had  submitted  a  proposition  to  compromise  the  con- 
flicting claims  of  the  advocates  of  Slavery  extension 
and  of  Slavery  restriction.     His  proposition  included 
seven  points:    (i)  the  admission   of  any  new  States 
properly  formed  from  Texas,  (2)  the  admission  of  Cali- 
fornia, (3)  the  organization  of  the  Territories  of  New 
Mexico  and  Utah,  without  the  Wilmot  Proviso  (/.  ^., 
with  Squatter  Sovereignty),  (4)  the  passage  of  the  last 
two  measures  in  one  bill,  (5)  the  payment  of  a  money 
indemnity  to  Texas,  (6)  a  more  rigid  Fugitive  Slave 
Law,  (7)  the  abolition  of  the  slave  trade,  but  not  of 
Slavery,  in  the  District  of  Columbia.      This  was  the 
basis  of  the  Compromise  of  1850.     It  was  opposed 
by  the  Whigs  and  Free  Soilers,  who  considered  it  a 

1  Senate,  35  Dem.,  25  Whig,  2  Free  Soilers.     House,  no  Dem.,  105  Whig, 
9  Free  Soilers. 


154  •       American  Politics.  [1850. 

surrender  of  free  soil  to  the  slave  power,  and  by  the 
extreme  Southern  Democrats,  who  considered  it  a 
surrender  of  the  slave-holder's  right  to  hold  his  property 
and  slaves  wherever  he  pleased  to  settle.  But  it  was 
undoubtedly  satisfactory  to  the  great  majority  of  the 
people,  as  averting  civil  war  and  disunion. 

6.  The  Compromise  of  1850  was  originally  united 
in  one  bill.1     It  was  debated  throughout  the  Session, 
and  gradually  divided  into  a  number  of  separate  bills. 
These  were  all  passed,  during  the  months  of  August 
and   September,  by  both    Houses,  and   became  law. 
California  thus  became  a  State  of  the  Union  Sep- 
tember pth,  1850.     Perhaps  the  most  important,  in  its 
bearing  upon  future  events,  was  the  Fugitive  Slave 
Law,  which  was  much  more  stringent  in  its  provisions 
than  the  one  already  in   existence.     It  directed  and 
encouraged  the  surrender  of  fugitive  slaves  by  United 
States  Commissioners  in  the  North,  without  any  trial 
by  jury,  and  commanded  all  good  citizens  to  aid  in 
making  arrests.     The  work  of  chasing  and  arresting 
fugitive  slaves  in  the  Northern  States  was  at  once  be- 
gun, and  carried  on  diligently,  often  inhumanly.     The 
consequent  disgust  and  horror  caused  the  passage,  by 
some  Northern  Legislatures,  of  Personal  Liberty 
Laws,  intended  to  protect  free  negroes  falsely  alleged 
to  be  fugitive  slaves.     Congress  adjourned  September 
3oth,  1850. 

7.  July    Qth    President    Taylor    died,    and    Vice- 
President  Fillmore  became  President  in  his  stead. 

1  Commonly  called  the  Omnibus  Bill,  from  its  all-embracing  nature. 


1851.]  An  Interval  of  Calm.  155 

The  change  had  no  effect  upon  party  contests,  the 
Administration  remaining  Whig,  as  before. 

8.  Congress  met   December  2d,   1850.     There  was 
XXXIst  Congress,     little  party  contest  at  this  Ses- 

2d  Session.  sion.     The  questions  of  Tariff, 

Internal  Improvements,  and  a  National  Bank,  had,  for 
a  time  at  least,  disappeared.  On  the  question  of 
Slavery,  which  had  so  suddenly  sprung  into  controlling 
interest,  neither  party  was  ready  to  take  a  decided 
stand.  The  business  of  this  Session  was  therefore  con- 
fined to  routine,  with  occasional  debates  on  Slavery. 
Congress  adjourned  March  3d,  1851. 

9.  Congress  met  December  ist,  1851,  with  a  Dem- 
XXXIId    Congress,      ocratic     majority    in     both 

ist  Session.  branches.1      In  the   House 

Linn  Boyd,  of  Kentucky,  a  Democrat,  was  chosen 
Speaker.  The  increased  Democratic  majority  in  Con- 
gress marks  the  satisfaction  with  which  the  people 
generally  had  received  the  Compromise  of  1850,  as 
they  understood  it.  There  was  little  party  contest  at 
this  Session.  The  question  of  Slavery  was  considered 
settled,  and  the  Democratic  majority  generally  sup- 
ported the  measures  recommended  by  the  Administra- 
tion for  carrying  on  the  government.  This  Session, 
however,  is  noteworthy  for  the  first  mention  of  a  meas- 
ure destined  to  transfer  the  conflict  between  Slavery 
and  its  opponents  to  the  country  west  of  Missouri, 
stretching  to  the  Rocky  Mountains,  and  called,  from 
its  principal  river,  the  Platte  Country.2  It  had  be- 

1  Senate,  34  Dem.,  23  Whigs,  3  Free  Soilers.     House,  140  Dem.,  88  Whigs, 
5  Free  Soilers.  2  Now  called  Kansas. 


156  American  Politics.  [1852, 

come  a  through  route  to  California,  and  its  population 
was  increasing.  It  now  applied  for  organization  as  a 
Territory,  but  the  application  was  not  acted  upon. 
Congress  adjourned  August  3ist,  1852. 

10.  The  Democratic  National  Convention  met 
at  Baltimore,  June  ist,  1852.  It  renewed  the  strict 
constructionist  platforms  of  preceding  Conventions, 
endorsed  the  Kentucky  and  Virginia  Resolutions  of 
1798,  and  pledged  the  Democratic  party  to  the  faith- 
ful observance  of  the  Compromise  of  1850,  including 
the  Fugitive  Slave  Law,  and  to  a  steady  opposition  to 
any  agitation  of  the  Slavery  question.  It  nominated 
Franklin  Pierce,  of  New  Hampshire,  and  William  R. 
King,  of  Alabama.  The  Whig  National  Conven- 
tion met  at  Baltimore,  June  i6th.  It  adopted  a  loose 
constructionist  platform,  more  cautiously  worded  than 
those  of  former  Conventions,  and  endorsed  the  Com- 
promise of  1850  and  the  Fugitive  Slave  Law  in  terms 
very  similar  to  those  of  the  Democratic  platform.  Af- 
ter a  session  of  six  days  it  nominated  Winfield  Scott, 
of  Virginia,  and  William  A.  Graham,  of  North  Caro- 
lina. The  Free  Soil  Democratic  Convention 
met  at  Pittsburgh,  August  nth.  It  adopted  a  plat- 
form declaring  Slavery  to  be  a  sin  against  God  and  a 
crime  against  man,  and  denouncing  the  Compromise 
of  1850,  and  the  two  parties  who  supported  it.  It 
nominated  John  P.  Hale,  of  New  Hampshire,  and 
George  W.  Julian,  of  Indiana. 

n.  The  success  of  the  Southern  delegates  in  com- 
mitting the  Whig  Convention  to  the  support  of  the 
Compromise  of  1850  did  not  injure  the  party  so  much 


1 8s  2.]  Nebraska.  157 

at  the  time  as  it  did  afterwards,  when  the  real  nature 
of  that  Compromise  was  declared.1  At  the  Presi- 
dential Election  in  November  its  popular  vote  was 
slightly  increased  since  the  previous  election,  al- 
though most  of  the  Free  Soil  vote  was  drawn  from  it. 
Nevertheless  the  Whig  electors  carried  only  four  States,2 
the  other  twenty-seven  States  choosing  Democratic 
electors,  though  generally  by  very  small  majorities. 

12.  Congress  met  December  6th,  1852.     A  bill  was 
XXXIId  Congress,     passed  by  the  House  to  or- 
2d  Session.  ganize    the    Territory    of 

Nebraska,  with  the  same  boundaries  as  the  formerly 
proposed  Territory  of  Platte.  It  was  tabled  in  the 
Senate.  The  opposition  to  it  came  from  Southern 
members  who  were  preparing,  but  were  not  yet  ready 
to  announce,  their  next  advanced  claim,  that  the  Com- 
promise of  1850  had  superseded  and  voided  that  of 
1820,  abolished  the  prohibition  of  Slavery  in  the  terri- 
tory North  of  the  Missouri  Compromise  Line  (36°  30' 
North  latitude),  and  opened  k  to  the  operation  of 
Squatter  Sovereignty.  In  February,  1853,  the  elect- 
oral votes  were  counted,  and  were  found  to  be,  for 
Pierce  and  King  254,  and  for  Scott  and  Graham  42. 
Pierce  and  King  were  therefore  declared  elected. 
March  3d,  1853,  Congress  adjourned,  and  March  4th 
Pierce  was  sworn  into  office.3 

1  The  Whig  party  was  then  forcibly  said  to  have  died  "of  an  attempt  to 
swallow  the  Fugitive  Slave  Law." 

2  Massachusetts,  Vermont,  Kentucky,  and  Tennessee. 

3  Vice-President  King,  on  account  of  illness,  was  sworn  into  office  after 
ward. 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 

SEVENTEENTH  ADMINISTRATION,   1853-1857. 

FranWin  Pierce,  President.  William  R.  King,  Vice-President 

XXXIIId  and  XXXIVth  Congresses. 

Popular  vote  for  President  in  1852:   Dem.   1,601,474, 
Whig  1,386,578,  Free  Soil  156,149. 

i.  CONGRESS  met  December  5th,  1853.     The  Dem- 
XXXIIId    Congress,      ocratic    majority    in    both 
ist    Session.  branches    was     increased.1 

In  the  House  Speaker  Boyd  was  again  elected.  The 
President's  Message  assured  those  who  had  elected 
him  that  he  intended  to  carry  out  the  Compromise  of 
1850,  in  all  its  parts.  A  Senate  bill  to  organize  the 
Territory  of  Nebraska  was  interfered  with  by  a 
demand  from  a  Southern  Senator  that  the  Missouri 
Compromise  should  not  be  so  construed  as  to  prohibit 
Slavery  in  the  new  Territory.  The  bill  was  at  once 
dropped.  But  a  sufficient  number  of  Free  State 
Democrats  soon  acquiesced  in  the  Southern  demand 
to  make  it  a  success. 

1  Senate,  36  Dem.,  20  Whigs,  .2  Free  Soilers.     House,  159  Dem.,  71 
4  Free  Soilers. 


1 8  S  4-  ]         The  Kansas-  Nebraska  Bill  1 5  9 

2.  One  week  later  the  famous  Kansas- Nebraska 
Bill  was  introduced  in  the  House.      It  divided  the 
territory  covered  by  the  previous   Nebraska  bill  into 
two  Territories,  one  directly  west  of  Missouri  and  be- 
tween the  parallels  of  37°  and  40°,  to  be  called  Kan- 
sas, and  the  other  north  of  this  and  between  the  paral- 
lels of  40°  and  43°,  to  be  called  Nebraska.     Accord- 
ing to  the  Compromise  of  1820  both  of  these  Terri- 
tories were  forever  barred  to  Slavery.       But  this  bill 
distinctly  declared  that  the  Compromise  of  1820  was 
inconsistent  with  the  constitutional  principle  of  non- 
interference  with    Slavery    by    Congress,   that   it    was 
therefore  inoperative,  void,  and  repealed  by  the  Com- 
promise of    1850,  and  that  hereafter  each  Territory, 
whether  north  or  south  of   the  parallel  of   36°  30', 
should  admit  or  exclude  Slavery  as  its  people  should 
decide.     This  bill  was  passed  by  the  Senate,  its  only 
opponents  being  the  Northern  Whigs  and  Free  Soilers. 

3.  The  Kansas-Nebraska  Bill  did  not  come  up  in  the 
Senate  until  about  two  months  later.     The  Southern 
Democrats  and  Southern  Whigs  united  in  favor  of  it 
The  Northern  Democrats  were  evenly  divided,1  and  the 
Northern   Whigs   and    Free   Soilers  united  against  it. 
The  division  between  the  Democratic  opponents  and 
advocates  of  the  Kansas- Nebraska  Bill  was  soon  healed. 
The  division  between  Northern  and  Southern  Whigs  was 
final.     The  Northern  Wrhigs  at  once  repudiated  their 
old  party  name,  and  were  called  at  first  Anti- Ne- 
braska Men.     The  Southern  Whigs  kept  the  party 

1  There  were  £8  Northern  Democratic  votes,  44  for,  and  44  against  it. 


160  American  Politics.  [1854. 

name  alive  a  few  years  longer,  but  their  principles  on 
the  controlling  question  of  Slavery  were  so  similar  to 
those  of  the  Southern  Democracy  that  they  can  hardly 
be  called  a  distinct  party.  Congress  adjourned  August 
7th,  1854. 

4.  A  new  party  had  by  this  time  risen  to  active  im- 
portance in  American  politics.  It  appeared  in  1852,' 
in  the  form  of  a  secret,  oath-bound  organization,  of 
whose  name,  nature,  and  objects,  nothing  was  told 
even  to  its  members  until  they  had  reached  its  higher 
degrees.  Their  consequent  declaration  that  they  knew 
nothing  about  it  gave  the  society  its  popular  name  of 
Know  Nothings.  It  accepted  the  name  of  the 
American  Party.  Its  design  was  to  oppose  the 
easy  naturalization  of  foreigners,  and  to  aid  the  elec- 
tion of  native-born  citizens  to  office.  Its  nominations 
were  made  by  secret  conventions  of  delegates  from 
the  various  lodges,  and  were  voted  for  by  all  members 
under  penalty  of  expulsion  in  case  of  refusal.  At  first, 
by  endorsing  the  nominations  of  one  or  other  of  the 
two  great  parties,  it  decided  many  elections.  After 
the  passage  of  the  Kansas-Nebraska  Bill,  the  Know 
Nothing  organization  was  adopted  by  many  Southern 
Whigs,  who  were  unwilling  to  unite  with  the  Democ- 
racy, and  became,  for  a  time,  a  national  party.  It 

!  The  Hartford  Convention  had  complained  of  the  easy  naturalization  of 
foreigners.  A  "Native  American"  party  had  existed  in  New  York  City  in 
1835,  but  it  was  only  local,  and  soon  disappeared.  In  1843  a  new  "Native 
American"  party  had  arisen  in  New  York  City,  and  extended  to  Philadelphia. 
Its  Whig  members  left  it  in  1844  because  of  its  refusal  to  vote  for  Clay,  and 
it  too  disappeared. 


1 8  5  5 .]   Internal  Improvements. — Kansas.         1 6 1 

carried  nine  of  the  State  elections  in  1855,  and  in  1856 
nominated  Presidential  candidates.  After  that  time  its 
Southern  members  gradually  united  with  the  Democ- 
racy, and  the  Know  Nothing  party  disappeared  from 
politics. 

5.  Congress  met  December  4th,  1854.     There  was 
XXXIIId  Congress,     little   party   contest    at   this 

2d  Session.  Session,    which   was    chiefly 

noteworthy  for  a  revival  of  the  question  of  Internal 
Improvements.  It  secured  Democratic  votes  by 
providing  for  detached  public  improvements.  A  River 
and  Harbor  bill  was  passed  by  both  Houses,  but  was 
vetoed  by  the  President.  Congress  adjourned  March 

3^,  1855- 

6.  Congress  met  December  3d,  1855,*  with  a  Demo- 
XXXI  Vth  Congress,     cratic  majority  in  the  Senate. 

ist   Session.  In    the    House   the    "  Anti- 

Nebraska  men  "  had  a  majority,  but  so  many  of  them 
were  Know  Nothings  that  no  candidate  could  control 
their  entire  vote.  After  130  ballots  for  Speaker,  lasting 
until  February,  1856,  it  was  agreed  that  the  highest 
number  of  votes  should  elect,  and  N.  P.  Banks,  Jr.,  of 
Massachusetts,  an  "  Anti-Nebraska  man,"  was  chosen. 
The  remaining  time  of  this  Session  was  occupied  by  the 
Kansas  Troubles,  which  will  be  referred  to  here- 
after. A  House  Committee  was  sent  to  Kansas,  and 
reported  that  no  free  or  fair  election  had  ever  taken 
place  in  that  Territory.  The  House  voted  an  appro- 

1  Senate,  34  Dem.,  2=;  Opposition.     House,  117  Anti-Nebraska,  79  Dem.,  37 
Pro-Slavery  Whigs. 
II 


1  62  A  mcrican  Politics.  [1855. 

priation  for  the  army,  with  a  proviso  forbidding  the  use 
of  the  army  to  enforce  the  acts  of  the  Pro-Slavery  Kan- 
sas Legislature.1  The  Senate  rejected  the  proviso,  and 
during  the  disagreement  between  the  Houses  the  time 
fixed  for  adjournment  arrived,  and  Congress  adjourned 
August  1  8th,  1856,  leaving  the  Army  Bill  unpassed. 
The  President  at  once  called  an  Extra  Session  of  Con- 
gress, in  which  the  Army  Bill,  without  the  proviso,  was 
passed,  and  Congress  again  adjourned  August  3oth, 


7.  Early  in    1856   the  "Anti-Nebraska   men"  had 
adopted  the  name  of  the  Republican  Party.2     The 
new  name  was  at  once  recognized  by  the   Democrats 
with  the  addition  of  a  contemptuous  adjective  (Black 
Republican).     It  will  be  seen  that  the  new  party  was  a 
loose  constructionist  party,  inheriting  the  desire  of  the 
Federalists  and  Whigs  for  Protective  Tariffs,  Internal 
Improvements,  and  a  system  of  National  Bank   Cur- 
rency, and  adding  to  them  the  further  principle  that  the 
Federal  Government  had  power  to  control  Slavery  in 
the  Territories.     The  new  party  had  therefore  an  as- 
sured existence  from  the  first,  for  its  additional  loose 
constructionist  principle  was  the  only  logical  answer  to 
the  strict  constructionist  principle  still  avowed  by  the 
Democrats,  that  Congress  had  no  constitutional  power 
to  interfere  for  or  against  Slavery  in  the  Territories. 

8.  The  attention  of  the  whole  country  had  now  been 

1  See  page  165. 

2  First   proposed,    it  is  said,  by  Governor    Seward,  of  New   York,  late  in 
1855. 


1 8  5  5 .  ]  The  Kansas  Struggle.  1 63 

turned  to  the  struggle  provoked  by  the  Kansas-Ne- 
braska Bill,  and  the  repeal  of  the  Missouri  Compromise. 
The  fertile  soil  of  Kansas  had  been  offered  as  a  prize 
to  be  contended  for  by  Free  and  Slave  States,  and  both 
had  accepted  the  contest.  The  Slave  State  settlers 
were  first  in  the  field.  The  slave-holders  of  Western 
Missouri,  which  shut  off  Kansas  from  the  Free  States, 
had  crossed  the  border,  pre-empted  lands,  and  warned 
Free  State  immigrants  not  to  pass  through  Missouri. 
The  first  election  of  a  delegate  to  Congress  took  place 
November  29th,  1854,  and  was  carried  by  organized 
bands  of  Missourians,  who  moved  over  the  border  on 
election  day,  voted,  and  returned  at  once  to  Missouri. 
The  spring  election  of  1855,  for  a  Territorial  Legis- 
lature, was  carried  in  the  same  fashion.  In  July,  1855, 
this  Legislature,  all  Pro-Slavery,  met  at  Pawnee,  and 
adopted  a  State  Constitution.  To  save  trouble  it 
adopted  the  laws  of  the  State  of  Missouri  entire,  with  a 
series  of  original  statutes  denouncing  the  penalty  of 
death  for  nearly  fifty  offenses  against  Slavery. 

9.  All  through  the  spring  and  summer  of  1855  Kan- 
sas was  the  scene  of  almost  continuous  conflict,  the 
Border  Ruffians  of  Missouri  endeavoring  to  drive 
out  the  Free  State  Settlers  by  murder  and  arson, 
and  the  Free  State  settlers  retaliating.  The  cry  of 
"  bleeding  Kansas "  went  through  the  North.  Emi- 
gration societies  were  formed  in  the  Free  States  to  aid, 
arm,  equip,  and  protect  intending  settlers.  These,  pre- 
vented from  passing  through  Missouri,  took  a  more 
Northern  route  through  Iowa  and  Nebraska,  and 


164  American  Politics. 

moved  into  Kansas  like  an  invading  army.  The 
Southern  States  also  sent  parties  of  intending  settlers. 
But  these  \vere  not  generally  slave-holders,  but  young 
men  anxious  for  excitement.  They  did  not  go  to  Kan- 
sas, as  their  opponents  did,  to  plow,  sow,  gather  crops, 
and  build  up  homes.  Therefore,  though  their  first 
rapid  and  violent  movements  were  successful,  their  sub- 
sequent  increase  of  resources  and  numbers  was  not 
equal  to  that  of  the  Free  State  settlers. 

10.  The  Territory  soon  became  practically  divided 
into  a  Pro-Slavery  district,  and  a  Free  State  district. 
Leavenworth  in  the  former,  and  Topeka  and  Lawrence 
in  the  latter,  were  the  chief  towns.     September  5th, 
1855.  a  Free   State   Convention   at  Topeka  re- 
pudiated the  Territorial  Legislature  and  all  its  works, 
as  the  acts  and  deeds  of  Missourians  alone.     It  also  re- 
solved to  order  a  separate  election  for  delegate  to  Con- 
gress, so  as  to  force  that  body  to  decide  the  question,1 
and  to  form  a  State  government.     January  i5th,  1856, 
the  Free  State  settlers  elected  State  officers  under  the 
Topeka  Free  State  Constitution.2 

11.  The    Federal    Executive    now   entered  the 
field.     January  24th,  1856.  the  President,  in  a  Special 
Message  to  Congress,  endorsed  the  Pro-Slavery  Legis- 
lature, and    pronounced    the    attempt  to  form  a  Free 
State  government,  without  the  approval  of  the  Federal 
authorities  in  the  Territory,  to  be  an  act  of  rebellion. 

1  The  question  was  decided  by  the  admission  of  the  Pro-Slavery  delegate. 
3  Under  this  (Topeka)  Constitution  Kansas  applied  for  admission  as  a  Stata 
and  was  rejected. 


1856.]  Assault  upon  Sinnner.  165 

He  then  issued  a  proclamation,  warning  all  persons  en- 
gaged in  disturbing  the  peace  of  Kansas  to  retire  to 
their  homes,  and  placed  United  States  troops  at  the 
orders  of  Governor  Shannon  to  enforce  the  (Pro-Slavery) 
laws  of  the  Territory. 

12.  The  population  of  Kansas  was  now  so  large  that 
very  considerable  armies  were  mustered  on  both  sides, 
and  a  desultory  civil  war  was  kept  up  until  nearly  the 
end  of  the  year.     During  its  progress  two  Free  State 
towns,    Lawrence    and     Ossawattomie,  were    sacked. 
July  4th,  1856,  the  Free  State  Legislature  attempted  to 
assemble  at  Topeka,  but  was  at  once  dispersed  by  a 
body  of  United  States  troops,  under  orders  from  Wash- 
ington.1    September   9th,  a  new  Governor,  Geary,  of 
Pennsylvania,  arrived  and  succeeded   in    keeping  the 
peace  to  some  extent  by  a  mixture  of  temporizing  and 
decided  measures.     By  the  end  of  the  year  he  even 
claimed  to  have  established  order  in  the  Territory. 

13.  The  heat  of  the  Kansas  discussion  in  Congress 
was  marked  by  an  Assault  upon  Charles  Sumner, 
Senator  from  Massachusetts.     In  a  speech  on  the  Kan- 
sas question  he  had  criticised   Senator  Butler,  of  South 
Carolina.     After  the   Senate's   adjournment,  May  22d, 
1856,  Representative  Brooks,  of  South  Carolina,  a  rela- 
tive of  Butler,  entered  the  Senate  chamber,  struck  Sum- 
ner  senseless  to  the  floor,  and  then  beat  him  so  cruelly 
that  an  absence  of  several  years  in  Europe  was  neces- 
sary for  his  recovery.     The  House  passed  a  resolution 

1  For  the  consequent  attempt  of  the  House  to  limit  this  use  of  the  army 
see  page  162. 


1 66  American  Politics. 

of  censure  upon  Brooks,  who  immediately  resigned  but 
was  unanimously  re-elected  by  his  district.  Massachu- 
setts declined  to  choose  another  Senator,  preferring  to 
leave  Sumner's  empty  chair  as  her  silent  protest  against 
unpunished  violence. 

14.  The  Know  Nothing  National  Convention 
met  at  Philadelphia,  February  22d,  1856.  It  adopted 
a  platform  which  declared  that  Americans  must  rule 
America,  and  that  naturalization  should  only  be  granted 
after  21  years'  residence,  and  condemned  the  repeal  of 
the  Missouri  Compromise.  The  Anti-Slavery  delegates 
(one-fourth  of  all  the  Convention)  withdrew  because  of 
a  refusal  to  endorse  the  right  of  Congress  to  re-establish 
the  Missouri  Compromise  Line.  The  Convention  then 
nominated  Millard  Fillmore,  of  New  York,  and  An- 
drew Jackson  Donelson,  of  Tennessee.  These  nomi- 
nations (but  not  the  platform)  were  accepted  by  a 
convention  of  delegates  from  the  remnants  of  the  great 
Whig  wreck,  held  at  Baltimore,  September  lyth.  The 
Democratic  National  Convention  met  at  Cincin- 
nati, June  2d,  and  adopted  the  strict  obstructionist 
platform  of  former  Conventions.  It  added  to  it  a  con- 
demnation of  Know  Nothingism,  and  an  approval  of 
the  Kansas-Nebraska  Bill  and  the  substitution  of 
Squatter  Sovereignty  for  the  Compromise  of  I820.1  It 
nominated  James  Buchanan,  of  Pennsylvania,  and  John 

1  From  this  time  party  platforms  become  so  long  and  ambiguous  that  only 
the  most  succinct  abstract  can  be  given.  The  reader  is  referred  to  Greeley's 
Political  Text  Book  for  1860,  and  to  the  Tribune,  World,  and  Herald  Almanacs 
since  1860,  for  the  platforms  in  full. 


1856.]  Presidential  Election.  1 67 

C.  Breckinridge,  of  Kentucky.  The  Republican 
National  Convention  met  at  Philadelphia,  June 
lyth,  and  adopted  a  loose  constructionist  platform.  It 
declared  in  favor  of  Internal  Improvements  (including 
a  Pacific  Railway),  and  of  the  right  and  duty  of  Con- 
gress to  prohibit  Slavery  and  Polygamy  in  the  Terri- 
tories and  admit  Kansas  as  a  Free  State,  and  against 
the  repeal  of  the  Missouri  Compromise,  the  general 
policy  of  the  Administration,  and  the  extension  of  Slav- 
ery. Its  nominations  were  John  C.  Fremont,  of  Cali- 
fornia, and  William  L.  Dayton,  of  New  Jersey. 

15.  The  Know  Nothings  and  Whigs  had  denounced 
both  the  Democrats  and  Republicans  as  sectional,  or 
"  geographical "  parties.     But  Fillmore's  supporters  had 
no  remedy  to  offer  for  the  troubles  caused  by  Slavery. 
In  the  Presidential   Elecftion  in  November,  there- 
fore, they  carried  but  one  State,  Maryland.     Democratic 
electors  were  chosen  by  the  remaining  fourteen  Slave 
States,  and  by  New  Jersey,  Pennsylvania,  Indiana,  Il- 
linois, and   California,  giving  them  a  majority   of  all. 
The  remaining  eleven  Free   States  chose  Republican 
electors.1     No  candidate  had  a  majority  of  the  popular 
vote. 

16.  Congress  met  December  ist,  i856.2     The  sud- 
XXXI Vth  Congress,     den    crystallization    of    the 

2d  Session.  various     Anti-Slavery     ele- 

1  If  Pennsylvania  and  Illinois  had  chosen  Republican  electors  Fremont  and 
Dayton  would  have  been  elected. 

2  Senate,  40   Dem.,  15    Rep.,  5   Kn.  N.     House,  108    Rep.,  83   Dem.,  43 
Kn.  N. 


1 68  American  Politics.  I1 857. 

ments  into  the  Republican  party  had  slightly  altered 
the  political  proportions  of  the  House.  There  was  no 
party  majority  there,  though  the  Republicans  still  had 
the  greatest  number  of  votes.  At  this  Session  grants 
of  public  lands  were  made  to  various  Western  and 
Southern  States  to  aid  the  construction  of  new  railroads. 
The  Tariff  of  1857  was  passed  by  both  Houses,  and 
became  law.  It  reduced  duties  on  imports  to  a  rate 
lower  than  those  of  any  Tariff  since  that  of  1816. 

17.  The  Kansas  troubles  took  up  much  of  the  time 
of  this   Session.     January    6th,  1857,   the    Free   State 
Legislature  again  attempted  to  meet  at  Topeka,  and 
was  again  dispersed  by  Federal  interference.     Its  pre- 
siding officer  and  many  of  its  members  were  arrested 
by  a  United  States  deputy  marshal.     The  Territorial, 
or  Pro-Slavery,  Legislature  quarreled  with  Gov.  Geary, 
who   resigned,  and    Robert   J.  Walker,  of  Mississippi, 
was  appointed  in  his  stead.     A  resolution  was  passed 
by  the  House  declaring  the  Acts  of  the  Territorial  Leg- 
islature  cruel,   oppressive,   illegal,  and   void.     It    was 
tabled  by  the  Senate. 

1 8.  In    February,    1857,    the   electoral   votes    were 
counted.     The  5  votes  of  Wisconsin  had  not  been  cast 
on  the  3d  of  December,  as  required  by  law,  but  on  the 
4th,  and  many  members  were  disposed  to  debate  their 
legality.     But  the  presiding  officer  declared  all  debate 
out  of  order,  and  announced  the  votes,  including  those 
of  Wisconsin,  to  be   174  for  Buchanan  and  Breckin- 
ridge,  114  for  Fremont  and  Dayton,  and  8  for  Fillmore 
and  Donelson.     Buchanan  and  Breckinridge  were 


The  Electoral  Votes.  169 

therefore  declared  elected.  March  3d,  1857,  Congress 
adjourned,  and  March  4th  Buchanan  and  Breckinridge 
-vere  sworn  into  office. 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

EIGHTEENTH  ADMINISTRATION,   1857-1861. 

James  Buchanan,  President.    John  C.  Breckinridge,  Vice-President 
XXXVth  and  XXXVIth  Congresses. 


vote  for  President   in   1856:  Dem.  1,838,169, 
Rep.  1,341,264,  Kn.  N.  874,534. 

i.  Two  days  after  Buchanan's  Inauguration  the  Su- 
preme Court  rendered  final  judgment  in  the  Dred 
Scott  Case.  It  had  been  decided  in  1856,  but  it  had 
been  thought  best  to  reserve  judgment  until  the  excite- 
ment of  the  Presidential  election  should  subside.  This, 
though  one  of  the  most  important  cases  ever  decided 
in  the  United  States,  was  originally  a  case  of  simple 
assault  and  battery.  Dred  Scott  was  a  Missouri  slave. 
His  owner  took  him  in  1834  to  Illinois,  a  State  in 
which  Slavery  was  prohibited  by  statute,  allowed  him 
to  marry  and  live  there  until  1838.  and  then  took  him 
to  Minnesota,  a  Territory  in  which  Slavery  was  pro- 
hibited by  the  Act  of  Congress  of  1820,  known  as  the 
Missouri  Compromise.  Thence  his  owner  took  him 
back  to  Missouri.  Here  he  was  whipped  for  some  of- 
fense, and  brought  suit  for  damages,  claiming  to  have 
170 


1 8  S  7  •  ]  The  Case  of  Dred  Scott.  r 7 1 

become  a  free  man  by  his  residence  in  Illinois  and 
Minnesota.  The  owner's  demurrer  denied  that  the 
plaintiff  was  a  citizen,  or  could  sue,  since  he  was  de- 
scended from  slave  ancestors,  and  never  had  been  set 
free.  This  was  decided  against  him  by  the  State  Cir- 
cuit Court  of  Missouri,  and  judgment  given  in  favor  of 
Dred  Scott.  By  successive  appeals  the  case  finally 
reached  the  United  States  Supreme  Court. 

2.  The  Decision  of  the  Supreme  Court  startled  the 
Northern  States.  It  declared,  in  substance,  that  the 
ancestors  of  negro  slaves  were  not  regarded  as  persons 
by  the  founders  of  the  government,  but  as  chattels,  as 
things,  "  who  had  no  rights  or  privileges  but  such  as 
those  who  held  the  power  and  the  government  might 
choose  to  grant  them;"  that  Dred  Scott,  the  plaintiff 
in  error,  was  consequently  no  citizen  of  Missouri,  but  a 
thing,  without  standing  in  Court,  and  his  case  must  be 
dismissed  for  want  of  jurisdiction;  and  that  his  resi- 
dence in  Minnesota  could  avail  him  nothing,  because 
the  Act  of  Congress  of  1820,  prohibiting  Slavery  north 
of  the  parallel  of  36°  30',  was  unconstitutional  and 
void,  and  could  not  prevent  a  slave-owner  from  settling 
in  any  Territory  with  all  his  property.  The  Court 
further  took  occasion  to  observe  that  Congress  had  no 
more  right  to  prohibit  the  carrying  of  slaves  into  any 
State  or  Territory  than  it  had  to  prohibit  the  carrying 
thither  of  horses  or  any  other  property,  for  slaves  were 
property,  whose  secure  possession  was  guaranteed  by 
the  Constitution.1 

1  On  the  contrary,  the  dissenting  Justices  of  the  Court,  and  the  mass  of  tin 
Northern    people,  considered  slaves  as  a  kind  of  property  whose  secure  pos 


172  American  Politics.  [^5  7* 

3.  The  Dred  Scott  decision  marks  the  last  attempt 
to  decide  the  contest  between  Slavery  Extension 
and  Slavery  Restriction  by  form  of  law,  and  from 
this  time  the  course  of  events  tends  with   increasing 
rapidity  to  a  settlement  by  force.     The  first  Compro- 
mise (in   1820)  had  prohibited  Slavery  in  part  of  the 
Territories,  leaving  the  question   open  as  to    the   re- 
mainder.    The  next  Compromise  (in  1850-1852)  had 
opened  all  the  Territories  to  Slavery,  if  established  by 
Popular  Sovereignty.     In  both  of  these  the  whole  peo- 
ple had  agreed.     But  the  Dred  Scott  decision,  in  its 
logical  consequences,  opened  all  the  Territories  and  all 
the  Free  States  to  at  least  a  temporary  establishment 
of  Slavery,  wherever  a  slave-owner  might   see   fit  to 
carry  his  slaves.     It  was*  plain  that  this  would  never  be 
received  as  law  by  the   Free  States.     The  only  prac- 
tical results  of  the  Dred  Scott  decision,  therefore,  were 
to  show  the  failure  of  the  Supreme  Court  as  an  arbiter, 
and  to  call  the  attention  of  the  North  to  the  imprac- 
ticable demands  of  the  slave-owners.     It  will  be  seen 
that  the  Northern  (or  Douglas)  Democrats,  who  had 
supported  the  South  heretofore,  refused  at  this  point  to 
followthe  Southern  lead  further,  and  chose  rather  to 
divide  the  party. 

4.  By  the  representation  given  by  the  Constitution  to 
three-fifths  of  the  slave  population,1  the  300,000  slave- 
owners had  grown  into  a  Slave  Power.     In  1857  they 

session  was  guaranteed  only  by  the  State  laws  which  made  them  property. 
Leaving  the  State  they  lost  the  guarantee  afforded  by  State  laws. 

1  By  which  the  owner  of  1,000  slaves  was  equal  in  political  power  to  6oc 
non-slave-  holders. 


The  Slave  Power.  173 

controlled  the  South,  the  South  controlled  the  Demo- 
cratic party,  and  the  Democratic  party  controlled  the 
Union.  They  were  becoming  extremely  doubtful  of 
success  in  the  Kansas  struggle,  where  they  were-evi 
dently  overmatched  by  the  superior  power,  resources,  and 
enthusiasm  of  the  Free  States.  They  had  not  received 
the  expected  increase  of  Slave  States  and  United  States 
Senators  from  the  territory  wrested  from  Mexico.1 
Should  they  fail  in  making  Kansas  a  Slave  State,  they 
saw  but  three  available  courses  to  pursue — to  add  Cuba 
to  the  Union  as  material  for  new  Slave  States,  to  ac- 
quire new  and  more  populous  territory  south  of  Texas 
for  the  same  purpose,  or  to  re-open  the  African  slave 
trade.  Failing  in  all  these,  they  desired  a  secession,  or 
separation,  from  the  Free  States,  and  the  formation  of 
an  independent  government,  in  which  Slavery  would  be 
secured  from  all  attacks  or  restrictions. 

5.  The  Purchase  of  Cuba  had  been  vainly  at- 
tempted at  various  times  since  the  inauguration  of 
President  Polk,  and  a  growing  disposition  was  apparent 
in  the  South  to  take  it  from  Spain  by  force.  In  1853, 
therefore,  England  and  France  asked  the  United  States 
to  join  in  a  tripartite  agreement  to  guarantee  Cuba  to 
Spain  forever.  The  proposition  was  rejected.  In  1854 

1  By  forming  new  Southern  States  to  balance  new  Northern  States,  the  two 
sections  were  carefully  kept  in  equilibrium  until  1845,  when  Texas  was  ad- 
mitted, (See  Appendices  C  and  F).  After  that  time  five  new  Northern  States 
were  admitted,  and  others  were  evidently  almost  ready  for  application,  while 
no  new  Southern  States  could  be  formed  to  counterbalance  them.  The  con- 
sequent impossibility  of  maintaining  a  future  equality  in  the  Senate  seems  to 
have  been  the  primary  cause  of  alarm  in  the  South.  For  the  present  proper- 
tion  in  the  Senate  see  Appendix  G. 


174  American  Politics. 

the  American  Ministers  to  England,  France,  and  Spain, 
meeting  in  the  Belgian  town  of  Ostend,  had  published 
the  so-called  Ostend  Manifesto,  which  declared 
that  there  was  no  hope  of  safety  or  repose  for  the 
United  States  without  the  acquisition  of  Cuba.  But, 
so  long  as  England,  France,  and  Spain  were  united  in 
opposing  it,  there  was  little  hope  for  the  South  in  the 
direction  of  Cuba. 

6.  In  1851  began  the  Era  of  Filibustering  Ex- 
peditions  against   Cuba  and   Central  America,  with 
the  ultimate  design   of  adding  slave  territory  to  the 
United  States.     Lopez,  a  Cuban,  with  500  men,  sailed 
from  New  Orleans  to  conquer  Cuba.     He  was  defeated 
and  executed,  and  his  men  imprisoned.     In  1855  Wil- 
liam Walker,  of  Tennessee,  sailed  from  New  Orleans  to 
conquer    Central   America.     He    was   repeatedly    de- 
feated, but   repeatedly  renewed    his    expeditions    until 
1858,  when  he  was  captured  by  the  President  of  Hon- 
duras, and  shot.     This  ended  filibustering. 

7.  The  re-opening  of  the  African  Slave  Trade 
was  already  seriously  demanded  by  many  slave-owners. 
They  believed  that  the  South  had  been  overpowered  in 
the   Kansas  struggle  because  of  her  inability  to  pour 
slaves  into  the  new  Territory  at  once.     There  seemed 
a  strong  probability  that  Southern  leaders  would  en- 
deavor to  obtain  from  the  next  Democratic  Conven- 
tion a  declaration  in  favor  of  renewing  the  slave  trade 
with  Africa. 

8.  Congress  met   December  7th,  1857,  with  a  Dem- 


1 85 7.]         The  Lecompton  Constitution.  175 

XXXVth    Congress,     ocratic     majority    in     both 
ist  Session.  branches.1     In    the    House 

James  L.  Orr,  of  South  Carolina,  a  Democrat,  was 
chosen  Speaker.  The  debates  of  this  Session  were 
mainly  upon  the  last  scene  in  the  Kansas  struggle. 
Governor  Walker  had  succeeded  in  persuading  the  Free 
State  settlers  to  recognize  the  Territorial  Legislature  so 
far  as  to  take  part  in  the  election  which  it  had  ordered. 
The  result  gave  them  control  of  the  Legislature.  But 
a  previously  elected  Pro-Slavery  Convention,  sitting  at 
Lecompton,  went  on  to  form  a  State  Constitution. 
This  was  to  be  submitted  to  the  people,  but  only  votes 
"  For  the  Constitution  with  Slavery,"  or  "  For  the  Con- 
stitution without  Slavery  "  were  to  be  received.  Not 
being  allowed  in  either  event  to  vote  against  the  Con- 
stitution, the  Free  State  settlers  refused  to  vote  at  all, 
and  the  Lecompton  Constitution  with  Slavery  re- 
ceived 6,000  majority.  The  new  Territorial  Legisla- 
ture, however,  ordered  an  election  at  which  the  people 
could  vote  for  or  against  the  Lecompton  Constitution, 
and  a  majority  of  10,000  was  cast  against  it.2 

9.  On  the  first  day  of  the  Session  the  Republican 
Congressmen  united  in  publishing  a  protest  against  any 
effort  to  make  Kansas  a  Slave  State  against  the  wish  of 
her  people.  The  President's  Message  argued  in 
favor  of  receiving  Kansas  as  a  State  under  the  Le- 

1  Senate,  39   Dem.,  20  Rep.,  5    Kn.  N.     House,  131    Dem.,  92   Rep.,  14 
Kn.  N. 

2  But  this  vote  was  considered  worthless  by  the  advocates  of  the  Lecompton 
Constitution,  on  the  ground  that  the  Territorial  Legislature  had  no  power  to 
order  it. 


ij6  American  Politics.  [1858. 

compton  Constitution  with  Slavery,  on  the  ground  that 
the  delegates  had  been  chosen  to  form  a  State  Consti- 
tution, and  were  not  obligated  to  submit  it  to  the  peo- 
ple at  all.  This  view  was  supported  by  the  Southern 
members  of  Congress,  and  opposed  by  the  Republicans, 
and  by  a  part  of  the  Democrats,  headed  by  Senator 
Douglas,  of  Illinois.1  The  Senate  passed  a  bill  admit- 
ting Kansas  as  a  State,  under  the  Lecompton  Consti- 
tution. The  House  passed  the  bill,  with  the  proviso 
that  the  Constitution  should  again  be  submitted  to  a 
popular  vote.  The  Senate  rejected  the  proviso.  A 
conference  committee  recommended  that  the  bill  of  the 
House  should  be  adopted,  with  an  additional  proviso 
making  large  grants  of  public  lands  to  the  new  State, 
if  the  people  of  Kansas  should  vote  to  adopt  the  Le- 
compton Constitution.  In  this  form  the  bill  was  passed 
by  both  Houses,  and  became  law.  An  attempt  was 
made  without  success  to  appropriate  public  lands  to  the 
States  for  educational  purposes.  Congress  adjourned 
June  ist,  1858. 

10.  Minnesota  had  become  a  State  of  the  Union 
May  nth,  1858.  In  the  case  of  Kansas  the  proffered 
inducement  of  public  lands  was  a  failure,  and  in  Au- 
gust the  Lecompton  Constitution  was  rejected  by  10,000 
majority.  Kansas,  therefore,  still  remained  a  Territory. 
In  1859,  at  an  election  called  by  the  Territorial  Legis- 
lature, the  people  decided  in  favor  of  another  Conven- 

1  "  It  is  not  satisfactory  to  me  to  have  the  President  say,  in  his  Message, 
that  that  Constitution  is  an  admirable  one.  That  is  none  of  my  business,  and 
none  of  yours.  You  have  no  right  to  force  an  unexceptionable  Constitution  upon 
a  people." — (Douglas,  Speech  in  Senate.) 


1 859.]         The  Harper  s  Ferry  Rising.  177 

tion  to  form  a  State  Constitution.  This  body  met  at 
Wyandot,  in  July,  1859,  and  adopted  a  State  Consti- 
tution prohibiting  Slavery.  The  Wyandot  Consti- 
tution was  submitted  to  the  people  and  received  a  ma- 
jority of  4,000  in  its  favor. 

11.  Congress  met  December  6th,  I858.1     Party  con- 
XXXVth  Congress,     test    at  this    Session  centred 

2d  Session.  upon  the  Homestead  Bill, 

which  gave  heads  of  families  the  right  to  purchase  160 
acres  of  public  lands  at  $1.25  per  acre.  It  was  passed 
by  the  House,  but  postponed  by  the  Senate.  The  bill 
to  appropriate  public  lands  for  educational  purposes 
was  passed,  but  vetoed  by  the  President.  Congress  ad- 
journed March  3d,  1859.  February  i4th,  1859,  Ore- 
gon had  become  a  State  of  the  Union. 

12.  In  1859  some  of  the  extreme  Abolitionists  de- 
termined to   try  the   Southern  policy  of  filibustering. 
John   Brown,  a  native  of  Connecticut,2  had  gone  to 
Kansas  in  1855,  and  settled  in  the  town  of  Ossawat- 
tomie.     Here  he  became  so  noted  as  a  leader  in  carry- 
ing the  war  into  the  Pro-Slavery  district  that  rewards 
for  his  arrest  were  offered  by  the   Governor  and  the 
President.     He    thereupon  left    Kansas,  and  in   July, 
1859,  settled  at  Harper's  Ferry,  Md.,  with  the  desper- 
ate intention  of  beginning  a  general  insurrection  of  the 
slave  race.     His  family  and  some  of  his  Kansas  asso- 
ciates were  with  him.     October    iyth,  having  matured 

1  Party  strength  was  unchanged  except  that  n  members  of  the  House  now 
classed  as  Anti-Lecompton  Democrats,  and  no  supported  the  Administration 
9  He  had  for  some  time  lived  in  "John  Brown's  Tract"  in  New  York. 
12 


178  American  Politics. 

their  plans  and  prepared  arms,  they  seized  the  town  of 
Harper's  Ferry,  and  the  United  States  Arsenal,  with 
all  the  arms  contained  in  it.  The  news  created  a  wild 
alarm  in  the  South.  Virginia  and  Maryland  militia 
were  hurried  to  Harper's  Ferry.  After  a  spirited  de- 
fense, most  of  Brown's  associates  were  shot,  and  their 
wounded  leader  and  a  few  others  were  taken  prisoners, 
tried,  and  hanged  by  the  State  of  Virginia.  John 
Brown's  execution  took  place  December  2d,  1859. 

13.  Congress   met    December    5th,    1859, 1  with    a 
XXXVIth  Congress,     Democratic  majority  in  the 

ist  Session.  Senate.     In  the  House  the 

Republican  vote  was  the  largest,  but  there  was  no 
party  majority.  Balloting  for  a  Speaker  was  con- 
tinued for  eight  weeks,  interrupted  by  angry  debates 
upon  a  recently  published  Abolitionist2  book  called 
"  The  Impending  Crisis  in  the  South,"  and  upon  the 
Harper's  Ferry  insurrection.  February  ist,  1860,  Wil- 
liam Pennington,  of  New  Jersey,  a  Republican,  was 
chosen  Speaker.  In  the  Senate  resolutions  were  at 
once  introduced  affirming,  in  substance,  that  Congress 
and  Territorial  Legislatures  had  no  power  to  prohibit 
Slavery  in  the  Territories.  They  were  debated,  at  in- 
tervals, for  nearly  four  months,  and  then  passed  by  a 
party  vote. 

14.  A  most  unpleasant  feature  of  this  Session  was 

1  Senate,  38  Dem.,  25  Rep.,  2  Kn.  N.     House,  109  Rep.,  86  Dem.,  13  Anti- 
Lecompton  Dem.,  22  Kn.  N. 

2  The  term  "Abolitionist"  was  then  one  of  reproach.     It  is  hardly  neces- 
sary to  say  that  it  is  not  so  used  in  the  text. 


1860.]  The  Covode  Investigation.  179 

the  so-called  Covode  Investigation  by  a  committee 
of  the  House.  Two  members  of  the  House1  had  de- 
clared in  debate  that  they  had  been  offered  induce- 
ments by  the  Administration  to  vote  for  the  Lecompton 
Bill,  and  a  committee  of  five  was  appointed,  on  motion 
of  Covode,  of  Pennsylvania,  to  investigate  the  charge. 
The  President  protested  against  the  investigation.  Af- 
ter a  tedious  investigation  of  three  months  the  Repub- 
lican majority  reported  that  the  Administration  had 
been  guilty  of  bribing  members  of  Congress  and  editors 
of  newspapers  to  favor  the  Lecompton  Bill.  The 
Democratic  minority  defended  and  exonerated  the 
President.  No  further  action  was  taken  in  the  matter. 

15  The  Homestead  Bill,  which  was  passed  at 
the  last  Session,  was  again  passed  by  the  House.  The 
Senate  passed  a  substitute,  to  which  the  House  agreed, 
giving  public  lands  to  actual  settlers  at  25  cents  per 
acre.  It  was  vetoed  by  the  President  on  the  ground 
that  it  was  unjust  to  the  older  States  in  really  giving 
away  lands  to  the  newer  States.2  The  application  of 
Kansas  for  admission  as  a  State  under  the  Wyandot 
Constitution3  was  approved  by  the  House,  but  rejected 
by  the  Senate.  Consequently  Kansas  still  remained  a 
Territory.  Congress  adjourned  June  i8th,  1860. 

1 6.  The  Democratic  National  Convention  met 

1  Hickman  and  G.  B.  Adrain. 

2  The  Senate  substitute  seems  to  have  been  purposely  drawn  so  as  to  pro- 
voke a  veto,  if  possible.     The  Southern   opposition  to  a  Homestead  Bill  seems 
to  have  come  from  the  apprehension  that  it  would  increase  immigration  in  thf 
North-West,  and  thus  increase  the  Free  State  representation  in  the  Senate. 

»  See  page  177. 


180  American  Politics.  [1860. 

at  Charleston,  S.  C.,  April  23d,  1860.  The  proceed* 
ings  were  stormy,  and  resulted  in  the  splitting  of  the 
Convention  and  the  party  into  two  distinct  fragments, 
through  the  refusal  of  the  Northern  (or  Douglas)  Dem- 
ocrats to  agree  to  the  demands  of  the  Southern  wing. 
Both  factions  re-affirmed  the  strict  constructionist  plat- 
forms of  past  Conventions,  and  declared  for  a  Pacific 
Railway  and  for  the  acquisition  of.  Cuba.  The  South- 
ern delegates  offered  additional  resolutions  affirming 
the  doctrine  of  the  Dred  Scott  decision,  that  neither 
Congress  nor  the  Territorial  Legislatures  had  a  right  to 
prohibit  Slavery  in  the  Territories.  The  Douglas  Dem- 
ocrats, refusing  to  abandon  Popular  Sovereignty  openly, 
offered  a  resolution  that  the  party  would  abide  by  the 
decisions  of  the  Supreme  Court.  The  Convention 
adopted  the  Douglas  platform,  whereupon  the  delega- 
tions from  many  Southern  States  successively  protested 
and  withdrew.  The  Convention  then  proceeded  to  bal- 
lot fifty-seven  times  for  candidates  without  a  choice,  and 
adjourned  to  meet  again  at  Baltimore,  June  i8th.  When 
it  re-assembled  several  new  Douglas  delegations  were 
admitted,  whereupon  the  few  remaining  Southern  dele- 
gates also  withdrew.  The  Convention  then  nominated 
Stephen  A.  Douglas,  of  Illinois,  and  Herschel  V.  John- 
son, of  Georgia. 

17.  The  Seceding  Delegates  had  at  once  organ- 
ized a  new  Convention  in  Charleston,  adopted  their 
platform,  and  adjourned  to  meet  again  in  Richmond, 
Va.,  June  nth.  Here  they  adjourned  again,  re-as- 
Bembled  at  Baltimore,  June  28th,  and  nominated  John 


r86o.]  National  Conventions.  181 

C.  Breckinridge,  of  Kentucky,  and  Joseph  Lane,  of 
Oregon.  The  former  American  (or  Know  Nothing) 
party,  now  calling  itself  the  Constitutional  Union 
Party,  held  its  National  Convention  at  Baltimore^ 
May  i Qth,  and  adopted  an  evasive  platform,  declaring 
as  its  political  principles  "  The  Constitution  of  the 
country,  the  Union  of  the  States,  and  the  enforcement 
of  the  laws."  It  nominated  John  Bell,  of  Tennessee, 
and  Edward  Everett,  of  Massachusetts.  The  Repub- 
lican National  Convention  met  at  Chicago,  May 
1 6th,  and  adopted  a  loose  constructionist  platform. 
This  outspoken  document  quoted  the  Declaration  of 
Independence  as  to  the  freedom  and  equality  of  all 
men ;  denounced  Democratic  threats  of  disunion,  and 
Democratic  administration  in  Kansas  and  at  Washing- 
ton; declared  that  freedom  was  the  normal  condition 
of  the  Territories,  which  Congress  was  bound  to  pre- 
serve and  defend;  and  pronounced  in  favor  of  Protec- 
tion, Internal  Improvements,  the  Homestead  Bill,  and 
a  Pacific  Railway.  It  nominated  Abraham  Lincoln, 
of  Illinois,  and  Hannibal  Hamlin,  of  Maine. 

1 8.  Four  Parties  were  now  in  the  field.  The  Bell 
platform  meant  simply  to  evade  the  question  of  Slavery 
altogether.  The  Lincoln  platform  avowed  a  purpose 
to  exclude  Slavery  from  the  Territories  at  any  erst 
The  Breckinridge  platform  avowed  a  purpose  to  carry 
Slavery  into  the  Territories  at  any  cost.  The  Doug- 
ias  platform  aimed  to  throw  the  responsibility  of  a 
decision  of  the  Slavery  question  upon  the  Supreme 
Court,  or  upon  the  people  of  the  Territories,  or  any- 
where, in  short,  except  upon  the  Democratic  party. 


1 82  American  Politics.  [1860. 

The  discordant  efforts  of  the  three  parties  opposed  to 
the  Republicans  only  made  Lincoln's  election  more 
certain,  and  at  the  Presidential  Election  in  No- 
vember Republican  electors  were  chosen  by  every  Free 
State  but  one,1  giving  them  a  majority  of  all  the  elect- 
oral votes.  No  candidate  had  a  majority  of  the  popu- 
lar vote.  Breckinridge  electors  were  chosen  by  most  of 
the  Southern  States. 

19.  The  South  Carolina  Legislature,  which  had  met 
to  choose  electors,2  remained  in  session  until  Lincoln's 
election  was  assured.     It  then  called  a  State  Conven- 
tion and  adjourned.     The  South  Carolina  Senators  and 
office-holders  in  the  Federal  service  at  once  resigned. 
December    2oth   the    Convention   unanimously  passed 
an   Ordinance   of   Secession,  entitled  "  An   Ordi- 
nance to  dissolve  the  union  between  the  State  of  South 
Carolina  and  other  States  united  with  her  in  the  com- 
pact entitled  the  Constitution  of  the  United  States  of 
America."     Copies  of  this  Ordinance  were  sent  to  the 
other    Slave    States,  and    commissioners   appointed   to 
treat  for  the  division  of  national  property  and  of  the 
public  debt. 

20.  This  bold  step  of  the  little  State  of  South  Caro- 
lina was  relied  upon,  and  with  good  reason,  by  the  dis- 
unionists  of  the  South  to  "  fire  the  Southern  heart,"  and 
urge  on  Secession  by  other  States.     Under  the 
spur  of  an  unwillingness  to  abandon  their  smaller  sis- 
ter, other  Slave  States  rapidly  came  abreast  with  her. 
Before    the   end  of  January,  1861,  Georgia,  Alabama, 

1  New  Jersey,  where  four  Lincoln  and  three   Douglas  electors  were  chosen. 

2  See  page  102. 


1 8  6 1 .  ]  Secession. — Compromise.  183 

Florida,  Mississippi,  Louisiana,  and  Texas  had  passed 
Ordinances  of  Secession.  Tennessee,  North  Carolina, 
Arkansas,  and  the  Border  States  still  refused  to  join 
their  more  Southern  neighbors. 

21.  Congress  met  December  3d,  1860.      The  Pres- 
XXXVIth  Congress,     ident's    Message    stated 

2d  Session.  his  inability  to  find  judges 

or  officers  in  the  South  to  issue  or  execute  process 
against  offenders,  and  his  own  opinion,  and  that  of  the 
Attorney-General,  that  under  such  circumstances  it  was 
impossible  legally  to  compel  a  State's  obedience.  The 
Message  argued  against  the  right  of  Secession  much  as 
did  Jackson's  Nullification  Proclamation  in  1832.  But 
the  latter  closed  with  a  warning,  to  which  the  known 
character  of  its  author  added  convincing  force,  that 
blood  would  flow  if  the  laws  were  resisted.  President 
Buchanan's  Message,  on  the  contrary,  summed  up  the 
whole  matter  by  saying,  in  effect,  that  he  knew  not 
what  to  do,  for  he  did  not  believe  that  Congress  could 
constitutionally  make  war  upon  a  State. 

22.  It  would  be  wearisome  to  detail  the  long  list  of 
propositions    for   compromise    and    conciliation    with 
which    this    Session  was    chiefly  occupied.     The    one 
which  seemed  most  likely  to  succeed  was  the  Critten- 
den  Compromise.1     Its   main   provisions  were  that 
Slavery  should  be  prohibited  north  of  the  parallel  of 
36°  30',  and  recognized  and  never  interfered  with  by 
Congress  south  of  that  line,  and  that  the  Federal  Gov- 
ernment should  pay  for  slaves  rescued  from    officers 
after  arrest.     These   provisions  were  to  be  made  a  part 

1  So  called  from  its  proposer,  John  J.  Crittenden,  of  Kentucky. 


184  American  Politics.  [1861 

of  the  Constitution,  and  were  never  to  be  altered  or 
amended  while  the  Union  existed.  This  measure 
failed  to  receive  the  Republican  vote,  without  which 
the  Southern  members  refused  to  entertain  it. 

23.  February  4th,  1861,  a  Peace  Congress,  com- 
posed of  delegates  from  13  Free  and  7  Border  States, 
met  at  Washington  at  the  request  of  the  Virginia  Leg- 
islature.    It  adopted  and  reported  to  Congress  a  num- 
ber of  resolutions  making  various  concessions  to  South- 
ern   demands.     Congress    threw    all    these   aside,  and 
passed,  as  a  substitute,  an  Amendment  to  the  Consti- 
tution  proposed    by  Senator    Douglas,  which    forbade 
Congress  ever  to  interfere  with  Slavery  in  the  States.1 

24.  While  these  measures  were  being  uselessly  de- 
bated, the  work  of  Secession  was  pressed  with  energy 
and  ability.     Time  which  should  have  been  spent  in 
making  the   Federal   Government  ready  to  assert  its 
supremacy    was    wasted    in    dallying   with    theoretical 
cures  for  incurable    evils.      Even    during  the  debates 
the  occasional  farewells  and  departures  of  Southern  Sen- 
ators and  Representatives  would  announce  that  another 
State  had  seceded  without  waiting  to  be  conciliated. 
In  February,  1861,  a  Convention  of  delegates  from  the 
seceding  States  met  at  Montgomery,  Ala.,  and  formed 
a  government  called  the   Confederate    States   of 
America.     Its  organization  was  a  tribute  to  the  ex- 
cellence   of   the    Constitution    of    1787,  for   it    mainly 
copied  that  instrument,  except  that  it  recognized  Slav- 
ery, and  forbade  Protective  Tariffs.     Jefferson  Davis, 

»  This  Amendment  was  never  adopted  by  the  necessary  number  of  States. 


1 86 1.]  The  Confederate  States.  185 

of  Mississippi,  and  Alexander  H.  Stephens,  of  Georgia, 
were  chosen  President  and  Vice- President.  A  Cabinet 
was  at  once  appointed,  and  arrangements  were  hastily 
made  to  organize  an  army,  navy,  and  treasury.  United 
States  forts,  arsenals,  and  arms  were  seized,  and  bat- 
teries were  prepared  for  the  reduction  of  the  forts  which 
resisted,  particularly  Fort  Sumter,  in  Charleston  Harbor. 
25.  As  soon  as  a  sufficient  number  of  Southern 
members  of  Congress  had  withdrawn  to  give  the  Re- 
publicans a  majority  in  both  Houses,  Kansas  was  ad- 
mitted as  a  State  under  the  Wyandot  Free  State  Con- 
stitution, and  the  Territories  of  Nevada,  Colora- 
do, and  Dakota  were  organized  without  mention  of 
Slavery,  thus  giving  the  South  the  benefit  of  the  Dred 
Scott  decision  therein.  The  so-called  Morrill  Tariff 
of  1861  was  also  passed  by  both  Houses  and  became 
law.  Its  great  object  was  the  protection  of  manufact- 
ures, revenue  being  a  secondary  consideration.1  In 
February,  1861,  the  electoral  votes  were  counted,  and 
were  found  to  be,  for  Lincoln  and  Hamlin  180,  for 
Breckinridge  and  Lane  72,  for  Bell  and  Everett  39, 
and  for  Douglas  and  Johnson  12.  Lincoln  and 
Hamlin  were  therefore  declared  elected.  After  au- 
thorizing a  loan  and  an  issue  of  Treasury  notes,  this 
dismal  Session  of  Congress  adjourned  March  3d,  1861, 
and  March  4th  Lincoln  and  Hamlin  were  sworn  into 
office. 

1  From  this  time  the  subject  of  Internal  Improvements  drops  out  of  politics. 
Both  parties  appear  to  recognize  the  right  of  Congress  to  appropriate  money 
for  isolated  public  improvements,  and  the  project  of  a  connected  system  of 
canals,  etc.,  has  not  yet  been  formally  revived. 


CHAPTER  XX. 

NINETEENTH   ADMINISTRATION,   1861-1865. 

Abraham  Lincoln,  President.         Hannibal  Hamlin,  Vice-President. 
XXXVIIth  and  XXXVIIIth  Congresses. 

Popular  vote  for  President  in    1860:  Rep.  1,866,352, 
Const.  Union    589,581,  Dem.  2,220,920    (Douglas 
*937S>*S7>  Breckinridge  845,763). 
i.  WHEN  the  New  Administration  entered  office 
affairs  seemed  almost  desperate.     Seven  States  had  al- 
ready revolted,  and  others  were  notoriously  ready  to 
join  them  upon  the  first  attempt  to  exert  the  National 
authority.     Part  of  the  Federal  army  had  surrendered, 
and  most  of  the  remainder  were  beleaguered  in  isolated 
forts.     The  Federal  ships  of  war  had  generally  been 
sent  to  distant  seas.     Many  of  the  experienced  officers 
of  the  army  and  navy  had  taken  service  under  the  re- 
bellious   Confederacy.     A  large    part  of  the    Federal 
munitions  of  war,  having  been  previously  transferred  to 
Southern  arsenals,  had  fallen  into  the  hands  of  the  in- 
surgents.    The    Federal  Treasury,  by  defalcation  and 
peculation,  was  nearly  bankrupt.     The  public  servants, 
1 86 


1 86 1.]  Civil  War.  18; 

like  those  of  a  dying  king,  seemed  anxious  only  to  se- 
cure as  much  plunder  as  possible  and  decamp.  In  the 
South  the  numbers  of  those  who  desired  a  permanent 
Southern  Confederacy  were  being  increased  daily  by 
accessions  from  those  who  had  at  first  intended  only  to 
remain  out  of  the  Union  long  enough  to  secure  guaran- 
tees for  the  future  safety  of  Slavery.  And  yet  men  of 
all  parties  in  the  North,  blind  to  the  certainty  of  ap- 
proaching war,  were  still  busied  with  plans  to  conciliate 
the  revolted  States  by  any  concession  except  that  of 
nationalizing  Slavery. 

2.  The  announced  purpose  of  the   President  to  re- 
supply  Fort  Sumter  precipitated  an  attack  upon  it 
by  the  rebel  forces  around  it.     After  a  bombardment 
of  thirty  hours,  the  American  flag,  for  the  first  time  in 
its  history,  was  lowered  under  the  fire  of  insurgent  citi- 
zens, and  the  fort  surrendered,  April   i4th,  1861.     The 
news  woke  the  North  as  if  from  a  trance.     The  mass 
of  the  Democracy  were  even  more  furious  than  the  Re- 
publicans.    The  Southern   States  were  no  longer  "  err- 
ing sisters,"  to  be  gently  conciliated.     The  whole  North 
clamored  for  arms,  for  leaders,  for  legal  authorization 
to  bring  the  South  back  to  law,  order,  and  obedience, 
at  the  point  of  the  bayonet. 

3.  Civil  War  had  fairly  begun.     For  the  first  time 
the  government,  in  time  of  war,  was  under  the  control 
of  a  loose  constructionist  party,  for  the  war  Democrats 
soon  became  absorbed  into  the  Republican  organiza- 
tion, and  the  resulting  fusion  frequently  took  the  name 
of  the  Union  Party.     The  experiment  was  hazard- 


1 88  American  Politics.  [1861 

ous.  In  previous  wars  the  Democratic  party,  though 
trammeled  by  its  strict  constructionist  theories,  had 
been  driven  to  strain  the  Constitution  to  conform  to  the 
necessities  of  the  hour.  But  the  sobering  responsibili- 
ties of  power,  and  the  active  (though  often  ill-timed  1 
opposition  of  the  Peace  Democrats,  checked  the  loose 
constructionist  theories  of  the  dominant  party,  and 
brought  the  Constitution  through  a  dreadful  struggle  of 
four  years  with  less  change  than  might  have  been  an- 
ticipated. 

4.  The  President  at  once  called  for  75,000  volun- 
teers, and  called  an  Extra  Session  of  Congress. 
Through  the  spring  of  1861  the  State  governments  of 
Virginia,  North  Carolina,  Tennessee,  and  Arkansas, 
which  had  hitherto  refused  to  secede,  followed  the 
same  general  line  of  action.  Military  Leagues 
were  made  with  the  Confederacy ;  Confederate  troops 
were  then  allowed  to  swarm  over  their  territory ;  and 
finally,  by  their  aid  and  countenance,  Ordinances  of 
Secession  were  passed.  Efforts  to  carry  out  this  plan 
in  Delaware,  Maryland,  Kentucky,  and  Missouri,  were 
not  successful.  By  the  time  set  for  the  meeting  of 
Congress  the  line  had  been  distinctly  drawn,  and  the 
rebellion  was  general  in  the  States  of  Virginia,  North 
Carolina,  South  Carolina,  Georgia,  Florida,  Alabama, 
Mississippi,  Louisiana,  Texas,  Arkansas,  and  Tennes- 
see.1 

1  About  40  Counties  of  Western  Virginia  refused  to  be  bound  by  the  action 
of  the  rest  of  the  State,  and  formed  a  Legislature  which  claimed  to  be  the 
real  Legislature  of  Virginia.  This  body  gave  the  assent  required  by  the  Con 


1 86 1 .]  War  Measu res.  1 89 

5.  Congress  met  July  4th,  1861,  with  a  Republican 
XXXVIIth  Congress,     majority  in  both  branches.1 
Extra  Session.  Only  the  Free  States  and 

the  Border  States  were  represented.  In  the  House 
Galusha  A.  Grow,  of  Pennsylvania,  a  Republican,  was 
chosen  Speaker.  In  the  Senate  three  Senators,  who 
had  absented  themselves  to  take  part  in  the  rebellion 
were  expelled.  The  House  voted  to  consider  at  this 
Session  only  bills  concerning  the  military,  naval,  and 
financial  operations  of  the  Government.  The  energy 
of  the  proceedings  was  only  stimulated  by  the  disas- 
trous battle  of  Bull  Run,  July  2ist.  Bills  were  passed 
by  both  Houses  to  close  the  Southern  ports  against 
commerce,  to  authorize  a  loan,  to  appropriate  money 
for  the  army  and  navy,  to  call  out  500,000  volunteers, 
to  define  and  punish  conspiracy  against  the  United 
States,  and  to  confiscate  all  private  property,  including 
slaves,  employed  against  the  United  States.  The 
Tariff  Act  of  August  5th,  1861,  again  increased  the 
duties  on  imports.  The  House,  by  a  heavy  majority 
(121-5),  pledged  itself  to  vote  any  amount  of  money 
and  any  number  of  men  necessary  to  put  down  the 
rebellion.  Propositions  looking  to  negotiations  for 
peace  were  constantly  offered  by  extreme  Democrats, 
and  as  constantly  voted  down  by  heavy  majorities  on 
the  ground  that  negotiation  with  armed  rebellion  was 

stitution  to  the  formation  of  a  new  State,  at  first  called  Kanawha,  afterwards 
West  Virginia.  Congress  recognized  their  right  to  do  so,  and  admitted  the 
new  State  in  1862. 

1  Senate,  Rep.  31,  Dem.  n,  Union  5.     House,  Rep.  106,  Dem.  42,  Union 
e8. 


190  American  Politics. 

unconstitutional.  Congress  adjourned  August  6th, 
1861. 

6.  From  the  beginning  of  the  war  the  Federal  Gov- 
ernment was  embarrassed  by  the  question  of  Fugitive 
Slaves.      August  3ist  General  John  C.  Fremont  had 
declared  the  slaves  of  Missouri  rebels  free  men,  but 
t'.iis  was  overruled  and  annulled  by  the  President.     In 
Virginia  General  Benjamin  F.  Butler  had  announced 
that  slaves  were  "  contraband  of  war,"  and  consequent- 
ly liable  to  confiscation  by  military  law.     Elsewhere  in 
the  Federal  lines  slave-owners,  on  proving  property, 
were  generally  given  possession  of  their  fugitive  slaves. 
The  disposition  of  the  North  was  to  put  down  the 
rebellion,  without  any  interference  with  the  Southern 
"institution"  of  Slavery.      But  it  was  plain  that  any 
long   continuance    of   the   rebellion  would   inevitably 
rouse  the  temper  of  the  Free  States,  and  provoke  hos- 
tility to  Slavery  itself. 

7.  Congress  met  December  2d,  1861.     Slavery  and 
XXXVIIth  Congress,      The    Prosecution    of 

ist  Session.  the    War   occupied  the 

Session.  Bills  were  passed  by  both  Houses  to  punish 
treason,  to  free  slaves  employed  against  the  Govern- 
ment, to  provide  for  the  construction  of  a  Pacific  Rail- 
way and  Telegraph,  and  to  donate  public  lands  to  the 
various  States  for  the  benefit  of  Agricultural  Colleges. 
The  army  was  forbidden  to  surrender  fugitive  slaves. 
The  Homestead  Bill1  was  brought  up  again  and 
passed.  Provision  was  made  for  the  United  States 

i  See  page  179. 


1 862.]  Emancipation.  19 1 

representation  by  consuls  in  the  negro  states  of  Hayti 
and  Liberia.  A  stringent  form  of  oath1  was  prescribed, 
to  be  taken  by  United  States  officials  and  beneficiaries. 
Most  of  these  measures  were  passed  by  party  votes. 
The  Tariff  Act  of  December  24th,  1861,  again  in- 
creased the  duties  on  imports.  Congress  adjourned 
July  i yth,  1862. 

8.  During  the  summer  of  1862  the  President  at  last 
determined  to  use  Slavery  as  a  means  either  of  coercion 
or   of   punishment.       By   proclamation,   therefore,   he 
warned  the  revolting  States  that,  unless  they  should 
return  to  their  allegiance  by  January   ist,    1863,  he 
would,   as  an    act  of   military  necessity,   declare   the 
slaves  in  those  States  to  be  free  men.     This  Proclama- 
tion had  no  effect.     January  ist,  1863,  President  Lin- 
coln issued  his   Emancipation    Proclamation  in 
the  terms  previously  announced.2     The  two  years  of 
civil  war  had  so  developed  Anti-Slavery  feeling  in  the 
North  that  the  Emancipation  Proclamation  did  not  ex- 
cite the  opposition  which  it  would  have  met  in  1861. 
Nevertheless  it  caused  a  temporary  falling  off  in  the 
Republican  vote. 

9.  Congress  met  December  ist,  1862.     Under  the 
XXXVIIth    Congress,        pressure    of    Military 

2d    Session.  Necessity    the    Acts 

of  this  Session  were  based  upon  a  looser  construction 
of  the  Constitution  than  those  of  the  previous  Session. 

1  Commonly  called  the  "Iron  Clad  Oath." 

2  It  did  not  apply  to  the  slaves  in  States  not  in  rebellion,  nor  to  the  con- 
quered portions  of  rebellious  States.     For  these  an  Amendment  to  the  Consti- 
tution was  necessary. 


192  American  Politics.  [1863. 

The  plan  of  a  National  Paper  Currency,1  as 
proposed  by  Secretary  Chase  of  the  Treasury,  was 
adopted.  It  more  than  took  the  place  of  the  favorite 
measure  of  the  Federalists  and  Whigs,  a  National 
Bank.  A  Draft  or  Conscription  Ac%  more  sweep- 
ing than  that  proposed  in  i8i4,2  was  adopted.  It 
provided  that  a  part  of  the  able-bodied  citizens  should 
be  drawn  by  lot  for  service  in  the  army.3  An  Act  to 
suspend  the  writ  of  Habeas  Corpus  was  passed.  Land 
grants  were  made  to  Kansas,  and  the  Secretary  of  the 
Treasury  was  authorized  to  obtain  further  loans.  Ap- 
propriations for  this  year  amounted  to  about  $972,- 
000,000.  Congress  adjourned  March  3d,  1863. 
West  Virginia  had  become  a  State  of  the  Union 
December  3ist,  1862. 

10.  By  the  Writ  of  Habeas  Corpus,  in  sub- 
stance, an  imprisoned  person  obtains  an  examination 
before  the  courts  and  a  release,  if  his  imprisonment  is 
shown  to  be  without  warrant  of  law.  Its  Suspen- 
sion was  considered  necessary  on  account  of  the  num- 
ber of  Northern  courts  disposed  to  resist  military  arrests 
of  suspected  persons.  It  is  certain,  however,  that  the 
summary  arrests  and  imprisonments  in  United  States 
forts,  the  seizures  of  newspapers,  and  the  dispersions 
of  public  meetings,  which  followed  the  suspension  of 
the  writ  of  Habeas  Corpus,  did  much  to  increase  the 
opposition  vote  for  a  time.  The  month  of  July,  1863, 

*  Commonly  called  "Greenbacks."  2  See  page  78. 

3  Several  State  courts  declared  it  unconstitutional.     Its  enforcement  wai 
met  by  bitter  opposition. 


1863.]        The  Draft. — Revenue  Laws.  193 

was  notable  for  the  sickening  scenes  of  the  three  days' 
Draft  Riot  in  New  York  City,  originating  in  resist- 
ance to  the  Conscription  Act  of  the  last  Session.  It 
was  forcibly  suppressed,  and  the  draft  was  carried  out. 

n.  Congress  met  December  yth,  1863,  with  a  Re- 
XXXVIIIth  Congress,  publican  majority  in  both 
ist  Session.  branches.1  In  the  House 

Schuyler  Colfax,  of  Indiana,  a  Republican,  was  chosen 
Speaker.  Both  Houses  passed  the  Internal  Rev- 
enue Law,  for  the  collection  of  a  revenue  from  do- 
mestic manufactures,  etc.,  the  Income  Tax  Law, 
levying  a  tax  of  five  per  cent,  on  incomes  over  $600, 
and  the  National  Bank  Law,  creating  a  system  of 
banks  to  take  the  place  of  State  banks.  The  Draft  and 
Homestead  Laws  were  amended  and  strengthened,  and 
the  Fugitive  Slave  Law  of  1850  was  abolished.  A 
proposed  XHIth  Amendment  to  the  Constitution  abol- 
ishing Slavery  was  adopted  by  the  Senate,  but  did  not 
receive  a  two-thirds  majority  in  the  House.  Congress 
adjourned  July  2d,  1864. 

12.  A  Convention  of  Radical  Men,  who  consid- 
ered President  Lincoln  timid  and  irresolute,  and  who 
wished  to  deal  with  rebellion  and  rebels  more  harshly, 
met  at  Cleveland,  Ohio,  May  3ist,  1864,  and  nomi- 
nated John  C.  Fremont,  of  California,  and  John  C. 
Cochrane,  of  New  York.2  The  Republican  Na- 
tional Convention  met  at  Baltimore,  June  yth,  and 

1  Senate,  36  Rep.,  14  Dem.     House,  102  Rep.,  75  Dem.,  9  "Border  Stat« 
men." 

2  They  afterwards  withdrew  in  favor  of  the  Republican  candidates. 

13 


194  American  Politics.  [1864, 

adopted  a  platform  declaring  war  upon  Slavery,  and 
demanding  that  no  terms  but  unconditional  surrender 
should  be  given  to  the  rebellious  States.  It  nominated 
Abraham  Lincoln,  of  Illinois,  and  Andrew  Johnson,  of 
Tennessee.1  The  Democratic  National  Conven- 
tion met  at  Chicago,  August  29th.  It  came  under  the 
control  of  the  Peace  Democracy,2  and  declared  in  its 
platform  that  it  was  the  sense  of  the  American  people 
that,  after  four  years  of  failure  to  restore  the  Union  by 
war,  during  which  the  Constitution  had  been  violated 
in  all  its  parts  under  the  plea  of  military  necessity,  a 
cessation  of  hostilities  ought  to  be  obtained.  It  nom- 
inated George  B.  McClellan,  of  New  Jersey,  and 
George  H.  Pendleton,  of  Ohio. 

13.  The   Democratic  party  was  thus  committed  to 
the  declaration  that  the  war  was  a  failure.     This  drove 
the  doubtful  votes  into  support  of  the  Republican  can- 
didates, and  assured  their  success.     In  the  Presiden- 
tial Election  in  November  Republican  electors  were 
chosen  by  all  the  States  not  in  rebellion,  except  New 
Jersey,    Delaware,    and     Kentucky.      The     members 
chosen    to  the    XXXI Xth   Congress  were  also   over- 
whelmingly Republican. 

14.  Congress  met  December  6th,  1864.     In  Feb- 
XXXVIIIth  Congress,     ruary,    1865,   the    House 

2d  Session.  finally  passed  the  Xlllth 

1  Johnson's   nomination    was   exactly   parallel    with  that   of  Tyler  by  the 
Whigs.     Both  were  Strict  Constructionists  by  nature,  temporarily  adrift  with- 
out a  party,  and  offered    by  the   loose  constructionist  party  a  place   rather  of 
honor  than  importance,  to  secure  Opposition  votes. 

2  Called  by  the  Union  party  "Copperheads,"  from  a  well-known  Northern 
snake. 


1865.]  The  Abolition  of  Slavery.  195 

Amendment  which  had  failed  at  the  last  Session  to 
receive  a  two-thirds  majority.1  It  was  modeled  on  the 
language  of  the  Ordinance  of  lySy,2  which  thus,  after 
a  struggle  of  nearly  eighty  years,  became  the  law  of 
the  land.  A  Joint  Resolution  was  passed  by  both 
Houses,  declaring  that  the  rebellious  States  were  in 
such  condition  that  no  valid  election  had  been  held  in 
them  for  electors,  and  that  no  electoral  votes  from  them 
should  be  counted.  The  electoral  votes  were  counted, 
and  were  found  to  be  for  Lincoln  and  Johnson  212, 
and  for  McClellan  and  Pendleton  21.  Lincoln  and 
Johnson  were  therefore  declared  elected.  At  this 
Session  the  Freedmen's  Bureau  Bill  was  passed, 
It  organized  a  bureau  for  the  protection  of  freedmen 
and  refugees  from  the  South.  March  3d,  1865,  Con- 
gress adjourned,  and  March  4th  Lincoln  and  Johnson 
were  sworn  into  office. 

1  This  was  ratified  by  three-fourths  of  the  States,  and  was  proclaimed  to  be 
in  force,  December  i8th,  1865. 

2  See  page  193.     This  provision  of  the  ordinance  of  1787  had  been  imitated 
in  1820  (Missouri)  and  in  1846  (Wilmot  Proviso). 


CHAPTER  XXI. 

TWENTIETH    ADMINISTRATION,    1865-1869. 

Abraham  Lincoln,  President.  Andrew  Johnson,  Vice-President, 

XXXIXth  and  XLth  Congresses. 

Popular  vote  for  President   in    1864:    Rep.  2,216,067, 
Dem.   1,808,725. 

1.  THE  gentleness,  kindliness,  and  greatness  of  mind 
of  President   Lincoln  were  just  beginning  to  win 
general    appreciation    when    be   fell    by    assassination, 
April  i4th,  1865.     Tbe  rebel  army  of  Northern  Vir- 
ginia had  previously  surrendered,  and  the  other  rebel 
armies  rapidly  followed  its  example.     On  the  death  of 
President  Lincoln,  Andrew  Johnson  succeeded  to 
his  office,  and  to  his  difficult  task,  the  reconstruction  of 
the  rebellious  States. 

2.  The  Constitution  had  made  no  provision  for 
the  reception  of  a  State  which  had  formally  claimed  the 
right  to  secede,  and  renounced  its  membership  in  the 
Union.     To  admit  them  at  once  to  their  former  posi- 
tion wrould  have  been  to  give  the  negro  race  to  the 
control  of  their  former  masters.     The  claims  of  the 

196 


1865.]  Reconstruction.  197 

negroes  to  security  in  their  lately  granted  freedom 
seemed  to  the  mass  of  the  Northern  people  superior  to 
all  theoretical  arguments  on  the  relations  of  the  States 
to  the  Federal  Government.  They  believed  that  the 
rebellious  States  should  be  kept  in  a  position  approach- 
ing that  of  Territories,  until  Congress  should  be  satis- 
fied of  the  safety  of  the  negroes  and  re-admit  them  to 
the  Union. 

3.  To  President  Johnson,  a  Strict  Constructionist  by 
nature,  the   idea  .that  a  State  could  be  punished  for 
treason  by  a  Federal  Congress  was  incomprehensible. 
His   Policy  of  Reconstruction  was  to  punish  in- 
dividuals, if  necessary,  for  treason,  but  to  re-install  the 
States  at  once  in  all  the  powers  held  by  them  before 
rebellion,  and  this  policy  he  endeavored  to  carry  out  by 
successive  Proclamations.     He  declared  all  the  South- 
ern  ports   open   to   commerce,  except  four  in    Texas. 
He  proclaimed  amnesty  and  pardon  to  all  persons  en- 
gaged in  the  rebellion,  except  fourteen  classes  of  lead- 
ers, who  were  to  make  special  applications  for  pardon. 
He  restored  the  writ  of  Habeas  Corpus  in  the  Northern 
States,  and    appointed   Provisional    Governors  for  the 
rebellious  States,  with  the  purpose  of  organizing  per- 
manent governments  as  soon  as  possible. 

4.  The  Republican  State  Conventions  of  1865 
generally  approved  the   President's  policy,  so  far  as  it 
had  been  developed,  but  stipulated  that  the  Southern 
States  should  be  held  under  provisional  governments 
until  they  should  recognize  and  accept  the  results  of 
the  war,  including  the  freedom  and  protection  of  the 


198  American  Politics.  [1865, 

negroes.  Unfortunately,  the  license  of  camp  life  had 
left  many  of  the  Southern  whites  with  but  slight  dispo- 
sition to  live  on  terms  of  political  equality  with  the 
former  slaves.  Cases  of  outrage  became  common,  so 
that  the  new  Congress,  which  was  overwhelmingly  Re- 
publican, came  together  with  a  fixed  determination  to 
protect  the  negroes  at  any  cost.  The  party  leaders 
seem  to  have  been  suspicious  of  President  Johnson's 
willingness  to  disregard  "  State  Rights "  in  assisting 
them. 

5.  Congress  met   December  4th,  1865,  with  a  Re- 
XXXIXth  Congress,     publican    majority  in   both 

ist  Session.  branches,1  sufficient,  if  nec- 

essary, to  carry  any  bill  over  the  President's  veto.  In 
the  House  Speaker  Colfax  was  re-elected.  In  Febru- 
ary, 1866,  the  First  Freedmen's  Bureau  Bill  was 
passed  by  both  Houses.  It  aimed  at  the  protection 
and  assistance  of  the  freedmen  at  the  South.  It  was 
vetoed  by  the  President  on  the  grounds  that  it  provided 
for  unlimited  distribution  of  lands  to  freedmen,  that  it 
tended  to  keep  the  minds  of  the  negroes  restless  and 
uneasy,  and  that  it  had  been  passed  by  a  Congress 
which  was  without  representatives  from  the  Southern 
States.  An  effort  to  pass  the  bill  over  the  veto  did  not 
receive  the  full  party  vote,  and  consequently  did  not 
obtain  a  two-thirds  majority.  It  was  now  evident  that 
there  was  at  least  a  disagreement  between  the  Presi 
dent  and  the  party  which  had  elected  him. 

6.  An   open   rupture   followed   the   passage  of  the 

1  Senate,  40  Rep.,  n  Dem      House,  145  Rep.,  40  Dem. 


1 866.]  The  Civil  Rights  Bill.  199 

Civil  Rights  Bill  in  March.  It  was  designed  to 
make  freedmen  citizens  of  the  United  States,1  (with  the 
right  to  sue  and  be  sued,  to  make  contracts,  etc.),  and 
to  punish  by  fine  and  imprisonment  any  person  inter- 
fering with  those  rights.  It  gave  Federal  courts  ex- 
clusive cognizance  of  offenses  against  the  Act,  and 
Federal  officers  the  power  of  arresting  and  holding  of- 
fenders to  bail.  The  bill  was  vetoed.  The  reasons 
given  were  that  it  gave  Federal  citizenship  to  4,000,000 
human  beings  just  released  from  bondage;  that  it  at- 
tempted to  give  the  law  where  the  States  had  their  own 
rights ;  that  it  overrode  the  State  courts,  and  created  a 
swarm  of  Federal  officials  charged  with  the  power  of 
arrest  for  the  discriminating  protection  of  the  black 
race.  The  bill  was  passed  over  the  veto  and  became 
law. 

7.  For  the  purpose  of  securing  the  principle  aimed 
at  in  the  Civil  Rights  Bill  by  making  it  a  part  of  the 
Constitution,  both  Houses  adopted  the  XlVth 
Amendment  in  June.2  The  President  informed  Con- 
gress of  his  disapproval  of  it.  A  Homestead  Bill 
was  passed,  applying  previous  Homestead  Bills  to  pub- 
lic lands  in  the  South.  It  was  agreed  by  both  Houses 
that  no  delegation  from  any  of  the  States  lately  in  re- 
bellion should  be  received  by  either  House  until  both 
Houses  should  unite  in  declaring  such  State  again  a 
member  of  the  Union. 

1  But  this  did  not  carry  the  right  to  vote.     For   that,  another  Amendment 
was  necessary. 

2  Ratified  by  three-fourths  of  the  States,  and  declared  in  force  July  28th, 
1868. 


2OO  American  Politics.  [1866. 

8.  In   July   the    Second    Freedmen's    Bureau 
Bill  was  passed  by  both   Houses.     It  continued  the 
bureau  for  two   years,  provided  for  selling  lands  to  the 
freedmen  at  a  low  rate,  reserved  the  property  of  the 
late  Confederate  Government  for  their  education,  and 
ordered  the  President  to  give  military  protection  to  the 
negroes  whenever  they  were  molested.     It  was  vetoed 
by  the  President.     The  reasons  given  were  that  it  gave 
the   President  too  much   power;  that  the  civil  courts 
were  perfectly  able  to  do  all  that  the  bureau  aimed  at 
in  the  way  of  protection ;  and  that  the  bureau  had  be- 
come a  political  machine,  by  which  the  negroes  were 
used  for  the  personal  advantage  of  its  officers.     The 
bill  was  passed  over  the  veto  and  became  law.     After 
reducing  the  army  and  the  revenue  tax,  and  reviving 
the  grade  of  General  of  the  Army,  Congress  adjourned 
July  28th,  1866. 

9.  The    Conflict  between  the    President  and    the 
Republican  majority  had  now  become  open  and  angry. 
The    Republican    National    Committee    expelled    its 
chairman  and  two  of  its  members,  who  had  sided  with 
the   President.     It  also  issued  an  Address   to  the 
Party,  defining  the  issues  between   Congress  and  the 
President.     It  called  the  attention  of  the  people  to  the 
fact  that  the  Constitution  made  no  provisions  for  the 
treatment  of  insurgent  States  forcibly  reduced  to  obedi- 
ence,1 and  claimed  that  the   Republican  plan  for  tiding 

1  But  this  "break  "  would  have  been  of  little  importance,  but  for  the  legacy 
left  by  Slavery,  the  freedmen.  This  was  the  element  of  the  question  which 
caused  the  trouble,  and  not  the  defect  in  the  Constitution. 


1 866.]        The  President  and  Congress.  201 

over  this  obstacle  was  wise  and  honest,  inasmuch  as  it 
would  "  give  loyalty  a  fair  start."  It  asserted  that,  un- 
der the  President's  plan,  the  whites  lately  in  rebellion 
would  seize  the  reins  of  power,  reduce  the  blacks  to 
real  slavery  under  some  plausible  name,  and  retain 
representation  for  them,  while  denying  their  political 
rights. 

10.  Congress  met  December  3d,  1866.     The  conflict 
XXXIXth  Congress,     between  the  Legislative  and 

2d  Session.  the  Executive  was  renewed 

at  once.  The  first  bill  of  the  Session,  giving  negroes 
the  right  to  vote  in  the  District  of  Columbia,  was  vetoed 
and  passed  over  the  veto.  Early  in  the  Session  a  Res- 
olution to  impeach  President  Johnson  was  adopted  by 
the  House,  and  a  committee  appointed  to  take  testi- 
mony. But  upon  their  report  the  House  decided  that 
the  grounds  of  impeachment  were  not  sufficient,  and 
thus  this  resolution  was  finally  lost. 

11.  The  main  feature  of  this  Session  was  a  persistent 
effort  to  Limit  the  President's  Power,  originating 
in  the  fear  that  he  designed  some  attack  upon  the 
privileges,  or  perhaps  the  existence  of  the   Legislative. 
In  January,  1867,  a  bill  was  passed  which  took  from 
the  President  the  power  given  by  the  Act  of  July,  1862, 
to  proclaim  general  amnesty.1     Provision  was  made  for 
the  meeting  of  the  XLth  and  all  succeeding  Congresses 
immediately  after  the  adjournment  of  the   preceding 

1  The  President  denied  the  right  of  Congress  to  do  so,  and  proceeded  to 
issue  further  Proclamations  of  Amnesty,  claiming  the  right  under  the  Consti 
tution. 


2O2  American  Politics.  [1867, 

Congress.1  Authority  was  given  to  the  clerk  of  the 
House,  before  its  meeting,  to  make  out  a  roll  of  regu- 
larly elected  members,  who  alone  should  take  part  in 
the  organization  of  the  House.2  The  Army  Appro- 
priation Bill  was  passed  with  a  " rider"  which  took 
from  the  President  the  command  of  the  army  by  pro- 
viding that  his  orders  to  it  should  only  be  given  through 
the  General  of  the  Army,  who  should  not  be  removed 
without  the  previous  approval  of  the  Senate.  It  also 
disbanded  all  the  militia  of  the  States  lately  in  rebellion. 
The  President  informed  Congress  that  he  signed  the 
bill  that  the  appropriation  might  not  be  lost,  but  that 
he  protested  against  the  "  rider,"  because  it  deprived 
him  of  the  command  of  the  army,  and  eleven  States  of 
their  militia,  both  of  which  were  guaranteed  by  the 
Constitution. 

12.  In  February  a  bill  for  the  admission  of  the  State 
of   Nebraska  was  passed  over  the  veto.     It  provided 
that  the  new  State  should  never  deny  the  right  of  vot- 
ing to  any  person  because  of  his  race  or  color.     Bills 
were  also  passed  to  give  Federal  courts  the  power  to 
issue  writs  of  Habeas  Corpus  when  any  person  was  de- 
prived of  liberty. 

13.  March  2d,  1867,  the  Bill  to  Provide  Efficient 
Governments  for  the   Insurrectionary  States 
was  passed  over  the  veto.     It  embodied  all  the  claims 

1  This  was   done   by  the   XLth   Congress,  but  abandoned  after   President 
Johnson's  term  of  office. 

2  To  prevent  the  organization  of  any  pseudo-Congress  by  Northern  Demo- 
crats and    Southern  claimants  of  admission.     Fortunately,  this   arrangement 
has  not  yet  caused  any  dispute  as  to  the  organization  of  the  House. 


1867.]  The  Reconstruction  Bill.  203 

of  Congress  to  control  the  re-admission  of  the  Southern 
States.  It  divided  them  into  military  districts,  each 
under  the  government  of  a  Brigadier-General,  who 
should  protect  the  rights  of  all  persons.  Each  State 
was  to  remain  under  this  military  government  until  a 
State  Convention,  chosen  without  regard  to  race  or 
color,  should  form  a  State  government  and  ratify  the 
XlVth  Amendment.  When  this  should  be  done  Con- 
gress engaged  to  re-admit  the  State  to  the  Union. 

14.  The  same  day  the  so-called  Tenure  of  Office 
Bill  was  passed  over  the  veto.  It  reversed  all  previ- 
ous legislation  upon  the  doubtful  point  of  the  Presi- 
dent's power  to  remove  officials  without  the  consent  of 
the  Senate.  Hitherto,  from  the  time  of  the  1st  Con- 
gress, it  had  been  held  that  the  consent  of  the  Senate 
was  necessary  in  making  an  appointment,  but  that  the 
power  of  removal  was  wholly  in  the  President.  Under 
this  interpretation  it  was  feared  that  there  would  be  a 
wholesale  removal  of  public  officials  after  Congress 
should  adjourn.  This  bill  provided  that  civil  officers 
should  hold  office  until  their  successors  should  qualify; 
that  the  Cabinet  should  hold  over  the  President's  term 
of  office,  and  should  only  be  removable  with  the  Sen- 
ate's approval;  that,  while  Congress  was  not  in  session, 
the  President  might  suspend  (not  remove)  any  official ; 
but  that  if  the  Senate  at  its  next  session  did  not  concur 
in  the  suspension  the  suspended  official  should  resume 
his  office ;  and  that  the  President  might  fill  any  vacancy 
by  death  or  resignation  while  Congress  was  not  in  ses- 
sion. Every  removal,  appointment,  or  acceptance  or 


204  American  Politics.  [1867. 

exercise  of  office  contrary  to  the  provisions  of  this  Act, 
was  declared  to  be  "  a  high  misdemeanor,"  1  and  pun- 
ishable by  fine  and  imprisonment,  or  both.  Congress 
adjourned  March  3d,  1867.  Nebraska  had  become 
a  State  of  the  Union  March  ist. 

15.  Three  Extra   Sessions   of  Congress  were 
XLth    Congress,     held    this    year.     The   first  met 

Extra  Sessions.  March  4th,  and  adjourned  March 
3oth,  1867.  The  second  met  July  3d,  and  adjourned 
July  2oth.  The  third  met  November  2ist,  and  ad- 
journed at  the  opening  of  the  first  Regular  Session. 
The  Republican  majority  in  both  branches  was  con- 
tinued, and,  though  slightly  reduced,  was  sufficient  to 
overrule  the  veto,  if  necessary.2  In  the  House  Speaker 
Colfax  was  re-elected.  These  almost  continuous  Ses- 
sions were  mainly  for  the  purpose  of  keeping  a  check 
upon  the  Southern  policy  of  the  President.  The  work 
of  reconstruction  by  Congress  had  been  fully  laid  out 
by  the  last  Session.  It  was  only  necessary  for  this  Ses- 
sion to  secure  its  accomplishment. 

1 6.  Congress  met  December  2d,  1867.     The  princi- 
XLth  Congress,     pal  topic  of  interest  at  this  Session 

ist  Session.  was  the  train  of  events  which  led 
to  the  impeachment  of  the  President.  August  5th, 
1867,  he  had  notified  Edwin  M.  Stanton,  Secretary 
of  War,  whom  he  particularly  disliked,  that  "  public 
considerations  of  a  high  character  "  compelled  him  to 
ask  the  Secretary  to  resign.  Stanton  ironically  replied 

1  Apparently  with  a  view  to  future  impeachment. 

*  Senate,  Rep.  40,  Dem.  14.     House,  138  Rep.,  47  Dem. 


1 8 68.]      Impeachment  of  the  President.  205 

that "  public  considerations  of  a  high  character  "  forbade 
him  to  resign.  He  was  therefore  suspended,  under  the 
provisions  of  the  Tenure  of  Office  Bill,  until  Congress 
should  meet,  and  the  General  of  the  Army,  U.  S. 
Grant,  was  appointed  Secretary  of  War  ad  interim. 
Stanton  protested  that  he  denied  the  President's  right 
to  remove  him,  but  would  yield  to  superior  force. 

17.  January  i4th,  1868,  the  Senate  refused  to  agree 
to  Stanton's  removal.     General   Grant  at  once  aban- 
doned the  office,  and  Stanton  again  took  possession. 
The   President  now  determined  to  disobey  the  Tenure 
of  Office  Bill,  and  force  an  issue  with   Congress.     Feb- 
ruary 2ist  he  again  removed  Stanton,  and  appointed 
General    Lorenzo   Thomas   in    his   place.     The  same 
day   the    Senate  voted  that   the   removal   was  illegal. 
General  Thomas,  however,  accepted  the  appointment, 
and  gave  Stanton  notice  to  quit.     Stanton  held  to  his 
office,  and  sent  the  notice  to  the  Speaker  of  the  House. 
Thereupon  the  House,  February  24th,  resolved  that  the 
President  be  Impeached  before  the  Senate  for  high 
crimes  and  misdemeanors. 

18.  March  5th  The  Trial  of  the  Impeachment 
was  begun  before  the  Senate  sitting  as  a  Court  of  Im- 
peachment, with  Chief  Justice  Chase,  of  the  Supreme 
Court,  in    the   chair.     The   Articles   of  Impeachment 
were  mainly  for  violation  of  the  Tenure  of  Office  Bill. 
During  the  early  part  of  the  trial  the  President  made  a 
tour  of  the  North  and  West,  and  in  many  passionate 
speeches  to  the  crowds  which  met  him  denounced  the 
XLth  Congress  as  "  no   Congress,"  referring  to  its  re- 


206  American  Politics.  [1868. 

fusal  to  admit  the  delegations  from  Southern  States. 
The  House  made  these  and  other  imprudent  utterances 
the  basis  of  additional  Articles  of  Impeachment. 

19.  The  trial  lasted  until  May  i6th,  when  three  of 
the  main  Articles  were  voted  on.     The  vote  stood  35 
for  conviction  and  19  for  acquittal,  5  Republican  Sena- 
tors voting  with   14  Democrats  for  acquittal.     It  was 
thus  apparent  that  there  was  not  a  two-thirds  majority 
for  conviction.     The  Senate,  therefore,  not  waiting  to 
vote  on  the  remaining  Articles,  adjourned  sine  die,  and 
the  trial  was  abandoned.     Chief  Justice  Chase  directed 
a  verdict  of  acquittal   to  be  entered,  and  Stanton  re- 
signed his  office.     Congress  adjourned  July  27th,  1868. 

20.  The  Presidential  contest  between  the  two  parties 
naturally  turned  upon  the  right  of  Congress  to  fill  the 
gap  in  the  Constitution,  and  lay  down  rules  for  the  re- 
admission  of  the  revolting  States.     Its  right  to  do  so 
was  inferred  by  the  loose  constructionist  party,  and  de- 
nied by  the  strict  constructionist  party.     The  Repub- 
lican  National   Convention  met  at  Chicago,  May 
2oth,  1868,  and  adopted  a  platform  holding  that  the 
Southern  States  had  abandoned  and  lost  their  positions 
in  the  Union  by  seceding,  and  could  only  be  re-ad- 
mitted on  terms  satisfactory  to  Congress.     It  approved 
the  terms  offered,  and  declared  that  it  was  the  business 
of  Congress  to  protect  equal  suffrage  in  the  South.     It 
nominated  Ulysses  S.  Grant,  of  Illinois,  and  Schuyler 
Colfax,   of    Indiana.     The    Democratic    National 
Convention   met  at   New  York   City,  July  4th,  and 
adopted  a  platform  demanding  that  the  Southern  States 


1 868."|  Presidential  Election.  207 

should  immediately  and  unconditionally  be  given  the 
representation  in  Congress  and  the  power  of  self-gov- 
ernment guaranteed  by  the  Constitution,  and  that  the 
regulation  of  suffrage  should  be  left  to  the  States.  It 
nominated  Horatio  Seymour,  of  New  York,  and  Francis 
P.  Blair,  of  Missouri. 

21.  At  the  Presidential  Election  in  November 
Democratic  electors  were  chosen  by   New  York,1  New 
Jersey,  Oregon,  and  by  five   Southern  States.     All  the 
other  States  which  were  allowed  to  vote2  chose  Repub- 
lican electors.     As  .the  issue  between  the  parties  was 
distinctly  made,  the  result  of  the  election  would  seem 
to  settle  the  rule  that  any  State  which   formally  casts 
off  allegiance  to  the  Federal  Government,  and  is  com- 
pelled to  submit,  must  be  re-admitted  by  Congress  in 
much  the  same  manner  as  a  Territory  applying  for  ad- 
mission as  a  State. 

22.  Congress  met  December  yth,  1868.     There  was 
XLth  Congress,     little  party  contest  at  this  Session. 

2d  Session.  In  February,  1869,  the  electoral 
votes  were  counted,  and  were  found  to  be,  for  Grant 
and  Colfax  214,  and  for  Seymour  and  Blair  80,  if  the 
vote  of  Georgia  were  allowed,  and  71  without  it.  As 
the  vote  of  Georgia  did  not  affect  the  result  the  ques- 
tion was  left  undecided.  Grant  and  Colfax  were 
therefore  declared  elected.  February  26th  the  XVth 
Amendment  to  the  Constitution,  guaranteeing  the 

1  Alleged  to  have  been  carried  by  frauds  in  New  York    City. 

2  Virginia,  Georgia,  Mississippi,  and  Texas  had  not  yet  complied  with  the 
conditions  of  Congress  and  been  re-admitted. 


208  American  Politics.  [1869, 

right  of  suffrage,  without  regard  to  race,  color,  or  pre- 
vious condition  of  servitude,  was  adopted  by  Congress.1 
March  3d,  1869,  Congress  adjourned,  and  March  4th 
Grant  and  Colfax  were  sworn  into  office. 

1  Ratified  by  three-fourths  of  the  States,  and  declared  in  force  March  3oth, 


CHAPTER  XXII. 

TWENTY-FIRST  ADMINISTRATION,   1869-1873. 
U.  S.  Grant,  President.  Schuyler  Colfax,  Vice-President, 

TWENTY-SECOND  ADMINISTRATION,   1873-1877. 
U.  S.  Grant,  President.  Henry  Wilson,  Vice-President. 

Papular  votes  for  President :  1 868,  Rep.  3,015,071,  Dem. 
2,709,613.  1872,  Rep.  3,597,070,  Dem.  2,834,079. 
I876,1  Rep.  4,033,950,  Dem.  4,284,757. 

i.  IT  does  not  seem  advisable  to  give  more  than  a 
brief  outline  of  the  political  history  of  the  years  1868- 
1876,  since  so  many  of  the  political  issues  of  that  period 
are  still  debatable  and  unsettled.  During  President 
Grant's  first  term  of  office  (1869-1873)  the  work  of 
Reconstruction  according  to  the  plan  settled  by 
Congress  was  steadily  carried  out,  and  successive  State 
Conventions,  organized  as  Congress  had  directed,  rati- 
fied the  XlVth  Amendment,  formed  State  governments 
and  were  re-admitted.  In  July,  1870,  the  work  had 

1  In  Florida  and  Louisiana  the  Returning  Board  count  has  been  taken. 
14  2O9 


2IO  American  Politics.  [1870. 

been  accomplished  and  all  the  States  were  again  mem- 
bers of  the  Union.1 

2.  The  Protection  of  the  Negroes  in  their  civil 
rights   (under   the   XlVth   Amendment),  and  in  their 
right  of  suffrage  (under  the  XVth  Amendment),  was  a 
task  of  still  more  difficulty.     Open  and  secret  associa- 
tions of  blacks  and  whites  led  to  a  state  of  armed  con- 
flict, disorder,  and  lawlessness  in  many  of  the  Southern 
States.     Much  of  the  time  of  Congress  was  taken  up 
by  legislation  intended  to  keep  the  peace  at  the  South, 
some  of  which  was  successful,  but  very  much  unsuc- 
cessful. 

3.  The  Republican   National  Convention  met 
at   Philadelphia,  June   5th,  1872,  and  adopted  a  plat- 
form calling  for  a  continuance  of  coercive  and  repress- 
ive measures  against  individuals    and    States    in    the 
South  until  civil  rights  and  the  right  of  suffrage  should 
be  finally  secured  to  the  negroes.     It  nominated  Presi- 
dent Grant,  and  Henry  Wilson,  of  Massachusetts.     To 
many  Republicans  it  seemed  that  the  powers  of  the 
Federal  Government  had  already  been  exerted  up  to  or 
beyond   constitutional   limits,  and   that   its    efforts   to 
police  the  Southern  States  ought  to  cease.     These,  call- 
ing themselves   Liberal  Republicans,  held  a  Na- 
tional  Convention  at   Cincinnati,  May  ist,  and  nomi- 
nated  Horace    Greeley,  of  New  York,  and    B.  Gratz 
Brown,  of  Missouri.     The    Democratic    National 
Convention  met  at  Baltimore  July  9th.     In  the  hope 

1  Though  the  votes  of  Arkansas  and  Louisiana  were  not  received  by  Con- 
gress in  1872. 


1872.]  Presiden tial  Election.  2 1 1 

of  securing  a  party  advantage,  it  accepted  the  platform 
and  candidates  of  the  Liberal  Republicans,1  and  thus 
committed  the  party  to  an  acceptance  of  the  results  of 
the  war  and  the  reconstruction  of  the  Southern  States. 

4.  In  the  Presidential  Election  in  November  the 
Liberal   Republican  vote  was  more  than  nullified  by 
the  refusal  of  many  implacable  Democrats  to  vote  for 
Greeley.     Of  the  electors  chosen,  286  were  Republic- 
ans  and    66    Democrats.      The    Republican    electors 
voted  for  Grant  and  Wilson.     Greeley  died  in  Novem- 
ber and  the   Democratic  electors  were  compelled  to 
vote  for  other  persons.     For  President  42  votes  were 
cast   for   Thomas   A.  Hendricks,  of  Indiana,   and    24 
scattering.2     For  Vice-President  47  votes  were  cast  for 
Brown,  and  19  scattering.     The  14  votes  of  Louisiana 
and  Arkansas  were  rejected  on  account  of  fraud  and 
illegality  in  the  election. 

5.  It  is  not  possible  yet  to  give  any  political   history 
of  President  Grant's  Second  Term  of  Office. 
But  one  issue  demands   mention,  as  it  divided  the  par- 
ties in  the  next  election.     Many  of  the  State  Gov- 
ernments at  the   South  had  been  formed  while  the 
whites  had  not  the  power  of  voting,  or  refused  to  exer- 
cise it.     They  thus  came  into  the  hands  of  the  negroes 
and  of  white  Republicans,3  who  generally  created  "  Re- 

1  A  Democratic  Convention  at  Louisville,  Ky.,  September  3d,  nomi 
nated  Charles  O'Conor,  of  New  York,  and  John  Q.  Adams,  of  Massacha 
setts.  They  declined,  but  30,000  votes  were  cast  for  their  electors  by  Demo 
crats  who  rejected  the  Liberal  Republican  nominees. 

a  Including  3  for  Greeley,  rejected. 

•  Angrily  called  "  carpet-baggers  "  by  the  other  whites. 


212  American  Politics.  [1872. 

turning  Boards  "  with  the  power  of  declaring  the  results 
of  elections.  When  the  whites  again  began  to  exercise 
the  power  of  voting,  they  claimed  that  the  Returning 
Boards  refused  to  count  legal  votes,  and  thus  perpet- 
uated their  governments.  The  Returning  Boards,  on 
the  other  hand,  charged  that  arson,  murder,  and  vio- 
lence of  all  kinds  had  been  employed  by  their  oppo- 
nents to  make  their  minority  vote  appear  a  majority. 
Whenever  these  State  governments  were  resisted,  they 
applied  to  Washington  and  received  Federal  assistance. 
Loose  Constructionists  considered  this  proper.1  Strict 
Constructionists  considered  the  troubles  in  the  South  to 
be  local  political  contests,  in  which  the  Federal  Gov- 
ernment had  no  right  to  interfere. 

6.  The  Republican  National  Convention  met 
at  Cincinnati,  June  i4th,  1876,  and  adopted  a  platform 
demanding  the  immediate,  vigorous,  and  continuous 
exercise  of  the  powers  of  the  Federal  Government  until 
all  classes  were  secure  in  their  civil  and  political  rights, 
and  the  Southern  States  were  permanently  pacified. 
It  nominated  Rutherford  B.  Hayes,  of  Ohio,  and  Wil- 
liam A.  Wheeler,  of  New  York.  The  Democratic 
National  Convention  met  at  St.  Louis  June  271)1, 
and  adopted  a  platform  which  accepted  all  the  results 
of  the  rebellion  (including  the  Xlllth,  XlVth,  and 
XVth  Amendments),  and  demanded  that  the  Federal 
Government  should  cease  to  support  the  "  carpet-bag  " 
governments  in  Southern  States.  It  nominated  Samuel 
J.  Tilden,  of  New  York,  and  Thomas  A.  Hendricks,  of 

1  Under  Article  IV,  §  4,  of  the  Constitution. 


1 876.]     Disputed  Presidential  Election.          21 3 

Indiana.     A   National    Greenback    Convention 

was  also  held  at  Indianapolis,  May  lyth,  composed  of 
men  who  desired  national  paper  money  instead  of  na- 
tional bank  notes,  and  who  opposed  resumption  of 
specie  payments.1  It  nominated  Peter  Cooper,  of  New 
York,  and  Samuel  F.  Gary,  of  Ohio. 

7.  At  the  Presidential   Election  in   November 
the  "  Greenback "  electors  polled  but  80,000  popular 
votes,  and  none  were  elected.     184   Democratic  and 
173  Republican  electors  were  chosen  without  dispute.2 
The  4  votes  of  Florida,  and  the  8  votes  of  Louisiana 
were  announced  by  the  Returning  Boards  of  those 
States  to  be   Republican,  and  certificates  of  election 
were  given  to  the  Republican  electors.     The  Demo- 
crats charged  that  the  Returning  Boards  had  reached 
this  result  by  fraudulently  refusing  to   count  a  large 
number  of  Democratic  votes,  and  they  urged  that  Con- 
gress should  refuse  to  accept  the  certificates  of  the  Re- 
publican electors  from  those  States.     The  Republicans, 
on  the  other  hand,  claimed  that  the  Returning  Board 
certificates  were  the  only  legal  voice  of  the  State,  de- 
clared by  its  own  laws,  and  that  the  Federal  Govern- 
ment had  no  power  to  revise  or  reject  them.3 

8.  The  duty  of  Counting  the   Electoral  Votes 


1  Many  of  these  claimed  to  be  Democrats.     But  it  is  difficult  to  sen  hov/  a 
Democrat,  a  Strict  Constructionist,  can  be  a  "Greenback  man." 

2  The  7  votes  of  South  Carolina,  and  i  vote  of  Oregon,  were  also  disputed  at 
first,  but  both  parties  soon  agreed  that  they  were  Republican. 

3  It  will  be  seen  that  the  two   parties  had,  for  the  time,  changed  principles, 
the  Democrats  advancing  a  loose  constructionist  claim,  and  the  Republicans 
adhering  to  a  strict  constructionist  principle. 


214  A  merican  Politics.  [1876. 

had  been  placed  nowhere  by  the  Constitution.  It  only 
directed  that  "  the  President  of  the  Senate  shall,  in  the 
presence  of  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives, 
open  all  the  certificates,  and  the  votes  shall  then  be 
counted."  The  two  Houses  had  seen  fit  to  exercise  a 
joint  authority  over  the  counting,  and  had  rejected 
votes  on  several  occasions,  but  now  the  Senate  was  Re- 
publican and  the  House  Democratic.  Each  House 
would  certainly  support  the  electors  of  its  own  party. 
Again,  as  in  1800  and  1824,  the  method  of  the  Presi- 
dential election  was  evidently  the  weak  spot  of  the 
Constitution. 

9.  As  there  was  no  constitutional  solution  of  the  dif- 
ficulty, the  moderate  men  of  both  parties  united  to 
make  one,  in  order  to  avoid  possible  civil  war.  The 
Electoral  Commission  Acft  was  passed  by  both 
Houses.  It  created  an  "  Electoral  Commission,"  com- 
posed of  five  Senators,  five  Representatives,  and  five 
Justices  of  the  Supreme  Court.  To  this  Commission 
all  votes  upon  which  the  two  Houses  could  not  agree1 
were  to  be  referred,  and  its  decision  was  to  be  final,  un- 
less overruled  by  both  Houses.  The  Commission  de- 
cided, in  regard  to  all  the  votes  which  came  before  it, 
that  the  vote,  as  sent  by  the  constituted  authorities  of 
the  State,  must  be  accepted  as  final  and  conclusive,  and 
could  not  be  examined  by  any  other  State  or  by  all  the 
States  together.  The  electoral  votes,  having  been 
counted  according  to  the  provisions  of  the  Act,  were 

1  Several  Republican  electors  were  found  to  be  Federal  office-holders,  and 
their  votes  were  also  disputed  under  Article  II  of  the  Constitution. 


1876.]          The  Electoral  Commission.  215 

found  to  be,  185  for  Hayes  and  Wheeler,  and  184  for 
Tilden  and  Hendricks.  Hayes  and  Wheeler  were 
therefore  declared  elected,  and  were  sworn  into  office 
March  5th,  1877. 


APPENDIX  A. 

Articles  of  Confederation. 

Articles  of  Confederation  and  Perpetual  Union  between 
the  States  of  New  Hampshire,  Massachusetts  Bay, . 
RJiode  Island  and  Providence  Plantations,  Connecti* 
cut,  New  York,  New  Jersey,  Pennsylvania,  Dela- 
ware, Maryland,  Virginia,  North  Carolina,  South 
Carolina,  and  Georgia. 

ARTICLE  I.— The  style  of  this  Confederacy  shall  be, 
"  The  United  States  of  America." 

ARTICLE  II. — Each  State  retains  its  sovereignty, 
freedom,  and  independence,  and  every  power,  jurisdic- 
tion, and  right,  which  is  not  by  this  Confederation  ex- 
pressly delegated  to  the  United  States  in  Congress  as- 
sembled. 

ARTICLE  III. — The  said  States  hereby  severally  en- 
ter into  a  firm  league  of  friendship  with  each  other,  for 
their  common  defense,  the  security  of  their  liberties, 
and  their  mutual  and  general  welfare,  binding  them- 
selves to  assist  each  other  against  all  force  offered  to, 
216 


Articles  of  Confederation.  217 

or  attacks  made  upon  them,  or  any  of  them,  on  ac- 
count of  religion,  sovereignty,  trade,  or  any  other  pre- 
tense whatever. 

ARTICLE  IV. — The  better  to  secure  and  perpetu- 
ate mutual  friendship  and  intercourse  among  the  peo- 
ple of  the  different  States  in  this  Union,  the  free  inhab- 
itants of  each  of  these  States,  paupers,  vagabonds,  and 
fugitives  from  justice  excepted,  shall  be  entitled  to  all 
privileges  and  immunities  of  free  citizens  in  the  several 
States ;  and  the  people  of  each  State  shall  have  free 
ingress  and  regress  to  and  from  any  other  State,  and 
shall  enjoy  therein  all  the  privileges  of  trade  and  com- 
merce subject  to  the  same  duties,  impositions,  and  re- 
strictions as  the  inhabitants  thereof  respectively;  pro- 
vided that  such  restrictions  shall  not  extend  so  far  as  to 
prevent  the  removal  of  property  imported  into  any  State 
to  any  other  State  of  which  the  owner  is  an  inhabit- 
ant; provided  also,  that  no  imposition,  duties,  or  re- 
striction shall  be  laid  by  any  State  on  the  property  of 
the  United  States  or  either  of  them.  If  any  person 
guilty  of,  or  charged  with,  treason,  felony,  or  other  high 
misdemeanor  in  any  State  shall  flee  from  justice  and 
be  found  in  any  of  the  United  States,  he  shall,  upon 
demand  of  the  governor  or  executive  power  of  the 
State  from  which  he  fled,  be  delivered  up  and  removed 
to  the  State  having  jurisdiction  of  his  offense.  Full 
faith  and  credit  shall  be  given  in  each  of  these  States 
to  the  records,  acts,  and  judicial  proceedings  of  the 
courts  and  magistrates  of  every  other  State. 

ARTICLE  V. — For  the  more  convenient  management 


218  Appendix  A. 

of  the  general  interests  of  the  United  States,  delegates 
shall  be  annually  appointed  in  such  manner  as  the 
Legislature  of  each  State  shall  direct,  to  meet  in  Con- 
gress on  the  first  Monday  in  November,  in  every  year 
with  a  power  reserved  to  each  State  to  recall  its  dele- 
gates, or  any  of  them,  at  any  time  within  the  year,  and 
to  send  others  in  their  stead  for  the  remainder  of  the 
year.  No  State  shall  be  represented  in  Congress  by 
less  than  two,  nor  by  more  than  seven  members;  and 
no  person  shall  be  capable  of  being  a  delegate  for  more 
than  three  years  in  any  term  of  six  years;  nor  shall 
any  person,  being  a  delegate,  be  capable  of  holding 
any  office  under  the  United  States  for  which  he,  or 
another  for  his  benefit,  receives  any  salary,  fees,  or 
emolument  of  any  kind.  Each  State  shall  maintain  \ts 
own  delegates  in  any  meeting  of  the  States  and  while 
they  act  as  members  of  the  Committee  of  the  States. 
In  determining  questions  in  the  United  States  in  Con- 
gress assembled,  each  State  shall  have  one  vote.  Free- 
dom of  speech  and  debate  in  Congress  shall  not  be 
impeached  or  questioned  in  any  court  or  place  out  of 
Congress;  and  the  members  of  Congress  shall  be  pro- 
tected in  their  persons  from  arrests  and  imprisonment 
during  the  time  of  their  going  to  and  from,  and  at- 
tendance on,  Congress,  except  for  treason,  felony,  or 
breach  of  the  peace. 

ARTICLE  VI. — No  State,  without  the  consent  of  the 
United  States,  in  Congress  assembled,  shall  send  any 
embassy  to,  or  receive  any  embassy  from,  or  enter  into 
any  conference,  agreement,  alliance,  or  treaty  with  any 


Articles  of  Confederation.  219 

king,  prince,  or  state ;  nor  shall  any  person  holding  any 
office  of  profit  or  trust  under  the  United  States,  or  any 
of  them,  accept  of  any  present,  emolument,  office,  or 
title  of  any  kind  whatever  from  any  king,  prince,  or 
foreign  state;  nor  shall  the  United  States,  in  Congress 
assembled,  or  any  of  them,  grant  any  title  of  nobility. 

No  two  or  more  States  shall  enter  into  any  treaty, 
confederation,  or  alliance  whatever  between  them, 
without  the  consent  of  the  United  States,  in  Congress 
assembled,  specifying  accurately  the  purposes  for  which 
the  same  is  to  be  entered  into,  and  how  long  it  shall 
continue. 

No  State  shall  lay  any  imposts  or  duties  which  may 
interfere  with  any  stipulations  in  treaties  entered  into 
by  the  United  States,  in  Congress  assembled,  with  any 
king,  prince,  or  state,  in  pursuance  of  any  treaties  al- 
ready proposed  by  Congress  to  the  courts  of  France 
and  Spain. 

No  vessels  of  war  shall  be  kept  up  in  time  of  peace 
by  any  State,  except  such  number  only  as  shall  be 
deemed  necessary  by  the  United  States,  in  Congress 
assembled,  for  the  defense  of  such  State  or  its  trade,  nor 
shall  any  body  of  forces  be  kept  up  by  any  State  in 
time  of  peace,  except  such  number  only  as,  in  the  judg- 
ment of  the  United  States,  in  Congress  assembled,  shall 
be  deemed  requisite  to  garrison  the  forts  necessary  for 
the  defense  of  such  State;  but  every  State  shall  always 
keep  up  a  well-regulated  and  disciplined  militia,  suffi- 
ciently armed  and  accoutered,  and  shall  provide  and 
constantly  have  ready  for  use  in  public  stores  a  due 


220  Appendix  A. 

number  of  field-pieces  and  tents,  and  a  proper  quantity 
of  arms,  ammunition  and  camp  equipage. 

No  State  shall  engage  in  any  war  without  the  con- 
sent of  the  United  States,  in  Congress  assembled,  un- 
less such  State  be  actually  invaded  by  enemies,  or  shall 
have  received  certain  advice  of  a  resolution  being 
formed  by  some  nation  of  Indians  to  invade  such  State, 
and  the  danger  is  so  imminent  as  not  to  admit  of  a  de- 
lay till  the  United  States,  in  Congress  assembled,  can 
be  consulted ;  nor  shall  any  State  grant  commissions  to 
any  ships  or  vessels  of  war,  nor  letters  of  marque  or  re- 
prisal, except  it  be  after  a  declaration  of  war  by  the 
United  States,  in  Congress  assembled,  and  then  only 
against  the  kingdom  or  state,  and  the  subjects  thereof, 
against  which  war  has  been  so  declared,  and  under  such 
regulations  as  shall  be  established  by  the  United  States, 
in  Congress  assembled,  unless  such  State  be  infested  by 
pirates,  in  which  case  vessels  of  war  may  be  fitted  out 
for  that  occasion,  and  kept  so  long  as  the  danger  shall 
continue,  or  until  the  United  States,  in  Congress  as- 
sembled, shall  determine  otherwise. 

ARTICLE  VII. — When  land  forces  are  raised  by  any 
State  for  the  common  defense,  all  officers  of  or  under 
the  rank  of  Colonel  shall  be  appointed  by  the  Legis- 
lature of  each  State  respectively  by  whom  such  forces 
shall  be  raised,  or  in  such  manner  as  such  State  shall 
direct,  and  all  vacancies  shall  be  filled  up  by  the  State 
which  first  made  the  appointment. 

ARTICLE  VIII. — All  charges  of  war,  and  all  other 
expenses  that  shall  be  incurred  for  the  common  defense, 


Articles  of  Confederation.  221 

or  general  welfare,  and  allowed  by  the  United  States, 
in  Congress  assembled,  shall  be  defrayed  out  of  a  com- 
mon treasury,  which  shall  be  supplied  by  the  several 
States  in  proportion  to  the  value  of  all  land  within  each 
State,  granted  to,  or  surveyed  for,  any  person,  as  such 
land  and  the  buildings  and  improvements  thereon  shall 
be  estimated,  according  to  such  mode  as  the  United 
States,  in  Congress  assembled,  shall,  from  time  to  time, 
direct  and  appoint.  The  taxes  for  paying  that  propor- 
tion shall  be  laid  and  levied  by  the  authority  and  direc- 
tion of  the  Legislatures  of  the  several  States,  within  the 
time  agreed  upon  by  the  United  States,  in  Congress  as- 
sembled. 

ARTICLE  IX. — The  United  States,  in  Congress  as- 
sembled, shall  have  the  sole  and  exclusive  right  and 
power  of  determining  on  peace  and  war,  except  in  the 
cases  mentioned  in  the  sixth  Article;  of  sending  and 
receiving  ambassadors;  entering  into  treaties  and  al- 
liances, provided  that  no  treaty  of  commerce  shall  be 
made,  whereby  the  legislative  power  of  the  respective 
States  shall  be  restrained  from  imposing  such  imposts 
and  duties  on  foreigners  as  their  own  people  are  sub- 
jected to,  or  from  prohibiting  the  exportation  or  impor- 
tation of  any  species  of  goods  or  commodities  whatever; 
of  establishing  rules  for  deciding,  in  all  cases,  what 
captures  on  land  and  water  shall  be  legal,  and  in  what 
manner  prizes  taken  by  land  or  naval  forces  in  the  serv- 
ice of  the  United  States  shall  be  divided  or  appro- 
priated ;  of  granting  letters  of  marque  and  reprisal  in 
times  of  peace;  appointing  courts  for  the  trial  of  pira- 


222  Appendix  A. 

cies  and  felonies  committed  on  the  high  seas ;  and  es- 
tablishing courts  for  receiving  and  determining  finally 
appeals  in  all  cases  of  captures ;  provided  that  no  mem- 
ber of  Congress  shall  be  appointed  a  judge  of  any  of 
the  said  courts. 

The  United  States,  in  Congress  assembled,  shall  also 
be  the  last  resort  on  appeal  in  all  disputes  and  differ- 
ences now  subsisting,  or  that  hereafter  may  arise  be- 
tween two  or  more  States  concerning  boundary,  juris- 
diction, or  any  other  cause  whatever;  which  authority 
shall  always  be  exercised  in  the  manner  following : 
Whenever  the  legislative  or  executive  authority,  or  law- 
ful agent  of  any  State  in  controversy  with  another,  shall 
present  a  petition  to  Congress,  stating  the  matter  in 
question,  and  praying  for  a  hearing,  notice  thereof  shall 
be  given  by  order  of  Congress  to  the  legislative  or  ex- 
ecutive authority  of  the  other  State  in  controversy,  and 
a  day  assigned  for  the  appearance  of  the  parties  by 
their  lawful  agents,  who  shall  then  be  directed  to  ap- 
point, by  joint  consent,  commissioners  or  judges  to  con- 
stitute a  court  for  hearing  and  determining  the  matter  in 
question ;  but  if  they  cannot  agree,  Congress  shall  name 
three  persons  out  of  each  of  the  United  States,  and 
from  the  list  of  such  persons  each  party  shall  alternately 
strike  out  one,  the  petitioners  beginning,  until  the  num- 
ber shall  be  reduced  to  thirteen ;  and  from  that  num- 
ber not  less  than  seven  nor  more  than  nine  names,  as 
Congress  shall  direct,  shall,  in  the  presence  of  Congress, 
be  drawn  out  by  lot ;  and  the  persons  whose  names 
shall  be  so  drawn,  or  any  five  of  them,  shall  be  com- 


Articles  of  Confederation.  223 

missioners  or  judges,  to  hear  and  finally  determine  the 
controversy,  so  always  as  a  major  part  of  the  judges 
who  shall  hear  the  cause  shall  agree  in  the  determina- 
tion ;  and  if  either  party  shall  neglect  to  attend  at  the 
day  appointed,  without  showing  reasons  which  Con- 
gress shall  judge  sufficient,  or  being  present,  shall  re- 
fuse to  strike,  the  Congress  shall  proceed  to  nominate 
three  persons  out  of  each  State,  and  the  secretary  of 
Congress  shall  strike  in  behalf  of  such  party  absent  or 
refusing;  and  the  judgment  and  sentence  of  the  court, 
to  be  appointed  in  the  manner  before  prescribed,  shall 
be  final  and  conclusive ;  and  if  any  of  the  parties  shall 
refuse  to  submit  to  the  authority  of  such  court,  or  to 
appear  or  defend  their  claim  or  cause,  the  court  shall 
nevertheless  proceed  to  pronounce  sentence  or  judg- 
ment, which  shall  in  like  manner  be  final  and  decisive ; 
the  judgment  or  sentence  and  other  proceedings  be- 
ing in  either  case  transmitted  to  Congress,  and  lodged 
among  the  acts  of  Congress  for  the  security  of  the  par- 
ties concerned ;  provided,  that  every  commissioner,  be- 
fore he  sits  in  judgment,  shall  take  an  oath,  to  be  ad- 
ministered by  one  of  the  judges  of  the  supreme  or  supe- 
rior court  of  the  State  where  the  cause  shall  be  tried, 
"  well  and  truly  to  hear  and  determine  the  matter  in 
question,  according  to  the  best  of  his  judgment,  with- 
out favor,  affection,  or  hope  of  reward."  Provided, 
also,  that  no  State  shall  be  deprived  of  territory  for  the 
benefit  of  the  United  States. 

All  controversies  concerning  the  private  right  of  soil 
claimed  under  different  grants  of  two  or  more  States, 


224  Appendix  A. 

whose  jurisdictions,  as  they  may  respect  such  lands, 
and  the  States  which  passed  such  grants  are  adjusted, 
the  said  grants  or  either  of  them  being  at  the  same  time 
claimed  to  have  originated  antecedent  to  such  settle- 
ment of  jurisdiction,  shall,  on  the  petition  of  either 
party  to  the  Congress  of  the  United  States,  be  finally 
determined,  as  near  as  may  be,  in  the  same  manner  as 
is  before  prescribed  for  deciding  disputes  respecting  ter- 
ritorial jurisdiction  between  different  States. 

The  United  States,  in  Congress  assembled,  shall  also 
have  the  sole  and  exclusive  right  and  power  of  regulat- 
ing the  alloy  and  value  of  coin  struck  by  their  own 
authority,  or  by  that  of  the  respective  States ;  fixing  the 
standard  of  weights  and  measures  throughout  the 
United  States;  regulating  the  trade  and  managing  all 
affairs  with  the  Indians,  not  members  of  any  of  the 
States ;  provided  that  the  legislative  right  of  any  State, 
within  its  own  limits,  be  not  infringed  or  violated;  es- 
tablishing and  regulating  post  offices  from  one  State  to 
another,  throughout  all  the  United  States,  and  exacting 
such  postage  on  the  papers  passing  through  the  same 
as  may  be  requisite  to  defray  the  expenses  of  the  said 
office;  appointing  all  officers  of  the  land  forces  in 
the  service  of  the  United  States,  excepting  regiment- 
al officers;  appointing  all  the  officers  of  the  naval 
forces,  and  commissioning  all  officers  whatever  in  the- 
service  of  the  United  States ;  making  rules  for  the  gov- 
ernment and  regulation  of  the  said  land  and  naval 
forces,  and  directing  their  operations. 

The  United  States,  in  Congress  assembled,  shall  have 


Articles  of  Confederation.  22$ 

authority  to  appoint  a  committee,  to  sit  in  the  recess  of 
Congress,  to  be  denominated,  "  A  Committee  of  the 
States,"  and  to  consist  of  one  delegate  from  each  State, 
and  to  appoint  such  other  committees  and  civil  officers 
as  may  be  necessary  for  managing  the  general  affairs 
of  the  United  States  under  their  direction ;  to  appoint 
one  of  their  number  to  preside ;  provided  that  no  per- 
son be  allowed  to  serve  in  the  office  of  president  more 
than  one  year  in  any  term  of  three  years ;  to  ascertain 
the  necessary  sums  of  money  to  be  raised  for  the  serv- 
ice of  the  United  States,  and  to  appropriate  and  apply 
the  same  for  defraying  the  public  expenses ;  to  borrow 
money  or  emit  bills  on  the  credit  of  the  United  States, 
transmitting  every  half  year  to  the  respective  States  an 
account  of  the  sums  of  money  so  borrowed  or  emitted ; 
to  build  and  equip  a  navy ;  to  agree  upon  the  number 
of  land  forces,  and  to  make  requisitions  from  each  State 
for  its  quota,  in  proportion  to  the  number  of  white  in- 
habitants in  such  State,  which  requisition  shall  be  bind- 
ing ;  and  thereupon  the  Legislature  of  each  State  shall 
appoint  the  regimental  officers,  raise  the  men,  and 
clothe,  arm,  and  equip  them  in  a  soldier-like  manner, 
at  the  expense  of  the  United  States ;  and  the  officers 
and  men  so  clothed,  armed,  and  equipped  shall  march 
to  the  place  appointed,  and  within  the  time  agreed  on 
by  the  United  States,  in  Congress  assembled ;  but  if 
the  United  States,  in  Congress  assembled,  shall,  on 
consideration  of  circumstances,  judge  proper  that  any 
State  should  not  raise  men,  or  should  raise  a  smaller 
number  than  its  quota,  and  that  any  other  State  should 
15 


226  Appendix  A. 

raise  a  greater  number  of  men  than  the  quota  thereof, 
such  extra  number  shall  be  raised,  officered,  clothed, 
armed  and  equipped  in  the  same  manner  as  the  quota 
of  such  State,  unless  the  Legislature  of  such  State  shall 
judge  that  such  extra  number  can  not  be  safely  spared 
out  of  the  same,  in  which  case  they  shall  raise,  officer, 
clothe,  arm,  and  equip  as  many  of  such  extra  number 
as  they  judge  can  be  safely  spared,  and  the  officers  and 
men  so  clothed,  armed,  and  equipped  shall  march  to 
the  place  appointed,  and  within  the  time  agreed  on  by 
the  United  States,  in  Congress  assembled. 

The  United  States,  in  Congress  assembled,  shall 
never  engage  in  a  war,  nor  grant  letters  of  marque  arid 
reprisal  in  time  of  peace,  nor  enter  into  any  treaties  or 
alliances,  nor  coin  money,  nor  regulate  the  value  thereof, 
nor  ascertain  the  sums  and  expenses  necessary  for  the 
defense  and  welfare  of  the  United  States,  or  any  of 
them,  nor  emit  bills,  nor  borrow  money  on  the  credit 
of  the  United  States,  nor  appropriate  money,  nor 
agree  upon  the  number  of  vessels  of  war  to  be  built  or 
pur^Lased,  or  the  number  of  land  or  sea  forces  to  be 
raised,  nor  appoint  a  commander-in-chief  of  the  army 
or  navy,  unless  nine  States  assent  to  the  same,  nor  shall 
a  question  on  any  other  point,  except  for  adjourning 
from  day  to  day,  be  determined,  unless  by  the  votes  of 
a  majority  of  the  United  States,  in  Congress  assembled. 

The  Congress  of  the  United  States  shall  have  power 
to  adjourn  to  any  time  within  the  year,  and  to  any 
place  within  the  United  States,  so  that  no  period  of  ad- 
journment be  for  a  longer  duration  than  the  space  of 


Articles  of  Confederation.  227 

six  months,  and  shall  publish  the  journal  of  their  pro- 
ceedings monthly,  except  such  parts  thereof  relating  to 
treaties,  alliances,  or  military  operations  as  in  their 
judgment  require  secrecy ;  and  the  yeas  and  nays  of 
the  delegates  of  each  State,  on  any  question,  shall  be 
entered  on  the  journal  when  it  is  desired  by  any  dele- 
gate; and  the  delegates  of  a  State,  or  any  of  them,  at 
his  or  their  request,  shall  be  furnished  with  a  transcript 
of  the  said  journal  except  such  parts  as  are  above  ex- 
cepted,  to  lay  before  the  Legislatures  of  the  several 
States. 

ARTICLE  X. — The  Committee  of  the  States,  or  any 
nine  of  them,  shall  be  authorized  to  execute,  in  the 
recess  of  Congress,  such  of  the  powers  of  Congress  as 
the  United  States,  in  Congress  assembled,  by  the  con- 
sent of  nine  States,  shall,  from  time  to  time,  think  ex- 
pedient to  vest  them  with ;  provided  that  no  power  be 
delegated  to  the  said  Committee,  for  the  exercise  of 
which,  by  the  Articles  of  Confederation,  the  voice  of 
nine  States  in  the  Congress  of  the  Ignited  States  as- 
sembled is  requisite. 

ARTICLE  XL — Canada,  acceding  to  this  Confedera- 
tion, and  joining  in  the  measures  of  the  United  States, 
shall  be  admitted  into,  and  entitled  to  all  the  advan- 
tages of  this  Union ;  but  no  other  colony  shall  be  ad- 
mitted into  the  same,  unless  such  admission  be  agreed 
to  by  nine  States. 

ARTICLE  XII. — All  bills  of  credit  emitted,  moneys 
borrowed,  and  debts  contracted  by  or  under  the 
authority  of  Congress,  before  the  assembling  of  the 


228  Appendix  A. 

United  States,  in  pursuance  of  the  present  Confedera- 
tion, shall  be  deemed  and  considered  as  a  charge 
against  the  United  States,  for  payment  and  satisfaction 
whereof  the  said  United  States  and  the  public  faith 
are  hereby  solemnly  pledged. 

ARTICLE  XIII. — Every  State  shall  abide  by  the 
determinations  of  the  United  States,  in  Congress  as 
sembled,  on  all  questions  which  by  this  Confederation 
are  submitted  to  them.  And  the  Articles  of  this  Con- 
federation shall  be  inviolably  observed  by  every  State, 
and  the  Union  shall  be  perpetual;  nor  shall  any  altera- 
tion at  any  time  hereafter  be  made  in  any  of  them, 
unless  such  alteration  be  agreed  to  in  a  Congress  of 
the  United  States,  and  be  afterwards  confirmed  by  the 
Legislatures  of  every  State. 

AND  WHEREAS  it  hath  pleased  the  great  Governor 
of  the  world  to  incline  the  hearts  of  the  Legislatures 
we  respectively  represent  in  Congress  to  approve  of, 
and  to  authorize  us  to  ratify,  the  said  Articles  of  Con- 
federation and  perpetual  Union,  know  ye,  that  we,  the 
undersigned  delegates,  by  virtue  of  the  power  and 
authority  to  us  given  for  that  purpose,  do,  by  these 
presents,  in  the  name  and  in  behalf  of  our  respective 
constituents,  fully  and  entirely  ratify  and  confirm  each 
and  every  of  the  said  Articles  of  Confederation  and 
perpetual  Union,  and  all  and  singular  the  matters  and 
things  therein  contained.  And  we  do  further  sol- 
emnly plight  and  engage  the  faith  of  our  respective 
constituents,  that  they  shall  abide  by  the  determinations 
of  the  United  States,  in  Congress  assembled,  on  all 


Articles  of  Confederation.  229 

questions  which  by  the  said  Confederation  are  sub- 
mitted to  them ;  and  that  the  Articles  thereof  shall  be 
inviolably  observed  by  the  States  we  respectively  repre- 
sent, and  that  the  Union  shall  be  perpetual.  In  wit- 
ness whereof,  we  have  hereunto  set  our  hands  in  Con- 
gress. Done  at  Philadelphia,  in  the  State  of  Pennsyl- 
vania, the  ninth  day  of  July,  in  the  year  of  our  Lord 
1778,  and  in  the  third  year  of  the  Independence  of 
America. 


APPENDIX  B. 
Constitution  of  the  United  States  of  America. 

PREAMBLE.1 

WE  the  people  of  the  United  States,  in  order  to  form 
a  more  perfect  union,  establish  justice,  insure  domestic 
tranquillity,  provide  for  the  common  defense,  promote 
the  general  welfare,  and  secure  the  blessings  of  liberty 
to  ourselves  and  our  posterity,  do  ordain  and  establish 
this  Constitution  for  the  United  States  of  America. 

ARTICLE  I.     LEGISLATIVE  DEPARTMENT. 

Section  I.     Congress  in  General? 
All  legislative  powers  herein  granted  shall  be  vested 
in  a  Congress  of  the  United  States,  which  shall  consist 
of  a  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives. 

Section  II.     House  of  Representatives. 
i.  The  House  of  Representatives  shall  be  composed 
of  members  chosen  every  second  year  by  the  people  of 
the  several  States ;  and  the  electors  in  each  State  shall 

1  Compare  the  Preamble  with  Confederation  Articles  I  and  III. 
*  Compare  Article  I,  §§  I- VI I  with  Confed.  Article  V. 
230 


The  Constitution.  231 

have  the  qualifications  requisite  for  electors  of  the  most 
numerous  branch  of  the  State  Legislature. 

2.  No  person  shall  be  a  representative  who  shall  not 
have  attained  to  the  age  of  twenty-five  years,  and  been 
seven   years  a  citizen   of  the   United   States,  and  who 
shall  not,  when  elected,  be  an  inhabitant  of  that  State 
in  which  he  shall  be  chosen. 

3.  Representatives  and  direct  taxes  shall  be  appor- 
tioned among  the  several  States  which  may  be  included 
within  this  Union,  according  to  their  respective  num- 
bers, which  shall  be  determined  by  adding  to  the  whole 
number  of  free  persons,  including  those  bound  to  serv- 
ice for  a  term  of  years,  and  excluding  Indians  not  taxed, 
three-fifths  of  all  other  persons.     The  actual  enumera- 
tion shall  be    made  within    three  years  after  the  first 
meeting  of  the   Congress  of  the   United   States,  and 
within  every  subsequent  term   of  ten   years,  in  such 
manner  as  they  shall  by  law  direct.     The  number  of 
representatives  shall  not  exceed  one  for  every  thirty 
thousand,  but  each  State  shall  have  at  least  one  repre- 
sentative ;  and  until  such  enumeration  shall  be  made, 
the  State  of  New  Hampshire  shall  be  entitled  to  choose 
three,  Massachusetts  eight,  Rhode  Island  and   Provi- 
dence Plantations  one,  Connecticut  five,  New  York  six, 
New  Jersey  four,  Pennsylvania    eight,  Delaware  one, 
Maryland  six,  Virginia  ten,  North  Carolina  five,  South 
Carolina  five,  and  Georgia  three. 

4.  When  vacancies  happen  in  the  representation  from 
any  State,  the  executive  authority  thereof  shall  issue 
writs  of  election  to  fill  such  vacancies, 


232  Appendix  B. 

5.  The  House  of  Representatives  shall  choose  their 
speaker  and  other  officers,  and  shall  have  the  sole 
power  of  impeachment. 

Section  III.     Senate. 

1.  The  Senate  of  the  United  States  shall  be  com- 
posed of  two  senators  from  each  State,  chosen  by  the 
Legislature  thereof   for  six   years,  and   each   senator 
shall  have  one  vote. 

2.  Immediately  after  they  shall  be  assembled  in  con- 
sequence of  the  first  election,  they  shall  be  divided,  as 
equally  as  may  be,  into  three  classes.     The  seats  of  the 
senators  of  the  first  class  shall  be  vacated  at  the  expira- 
tion of  the  second  year,  of  the  second  class  at  the  ex- 
piration of  the  fourth  year,  and  of  the  third  class  at  the 
expiration  of  the  sixth  year,  so  that  one-third  may  be 
chosen  every  second  year;  and  if  vacancies  happen, 
by  resignation   or  otherwise,  during  the  recess  of  the 
Legislature  of  any  State,  the  executive    thereof  may 
make  temporary  appointments  until  the  next  meeting 
of  the  Legislature,  which  shall  then  fill  such  vacancies. 

3.  No  person  shall  be  a  senator  who  shall  not  have 
attained  to  the  age  of  thirty  years,  and  been  nine  years 
a  citizen  of  the  United  States,  and  who  shall  not,  when 
elected,  be  an  inhabitant  of  that  State  for  which  he 
shall  be  chosen. 

4.  The  Vice-President  of  the  United  States  shall  be 
President  of  the  Senate,  but  shall  have  no  vote,  unless 
they  be  equally  divided. 

5.  The  Senate  shall  choose  their  officers,  and  also  a 


The  Constitution.  233 

president  pro  tempore,  in  the  absence  of  the  Vice-Pres- 
ident, or  when  he  shall  exercise  the  office  of  President 
of  the  United  States. 

6.  The  Senate  shall  have  the  sole  power  to  try  all 
impeachments.     When   sitting   for   that  purpose,  they 
shall  be  on  oath  or  affirmation.     When  the  President 
of  the  United  States  is  tried,  the  chief  justice  shall  pre- 
side: and  no  person   shall  be  convicted  without  the 
concurrence  of  two-thirds  of  the  members  present. 

7.  Judgment  in  case  of  impeachment  shall  not  extend 
farther  than  to  removal  from  office,  and  disqualification 
to  hold  and  enjoy  any  office  of  honor,  trust,  or  profit 
under  the  United  States ;  but  the  party  convicted  shall, 
nevertheless,  be  liable  and  subject  to  indictment,  trial, 
judgment,  and  punishment  according  to  law. 

Section  IV.     Both  Houses. 

1.  The  times,  places,  and  manner  of  holding  elec- 
tions  for   senators   and   representatives   shall  be  pre- 
scribed in  each  State  by  the  Legislature  thereof;  but 
the  Congress  may  at  any  time,  by  law,  make  or  alter 
such  regulations,  except  as  to  the  place  of  choosing 
senators. 

2.  The    Congress   shall   assemble  at  least   once  in 
every  year,  and  such  meeting  shall  be  on  the  first  Mon- 
day in  December,  unless  they  shall  by  law  appoint  a 
different  day. 

Section  V.     The  Houses  Separately. 
i.  Each  house  shall  be  the  judge  of  the  elections, 
returns,  and  qualifications  of  its  own  members,  and  a 


234  Appendix  £. 

majority  of  each  shall  constitute  a  quorum  to  do  busi- 
ness ;  but  a  smaller  number  may  adjourn  from  day  to 
day,  and  may  be  authorized  to  compel  the  attendance 
of  absent  members,  in  such  manner  and  under  such 
penalties  as  each  house  may  provide. 

2.  Each  house  may  determine  the  rules  of  its  pro- 
ceedings, punish  its  members  for  disorderly  behavior, 
and,  with  the  concurrence  of  two-thirds,  expel  a  mem- 
ber. 

3.  Each  house  shall  keep  a  journal  of  its  proceed- 
ings, and  from  time  to  time  publish  the  same,  except- 
ing such  parts  as  may  in  their  judgment  require  secrecy  \ 
and  the  yeas  and  nays  of  the  members  of  either  house, 
on  any  question,  shall,  at  the  desire  of  one-fifth  of  those 
present,  be  entered  on  the  journal. 

4.  Neither   house   during  the   session   of  Congress 
shall,  without  the  consent  of  the  other,  adjourn  for  more 
than  three  days,  nor  to  any  other  place  than  that  in 
which  the  two  houses  shall  be  sitting. 

Section  VI.     Disabilities  of  Members. 

i.  The  senators  and  representatives  shall  receive  a 
compensation  for  their  services,  to  be  ascertained  by 
law,  and  paid  out  of  the  treasury  of  the  United  States. 
They  shall  in  all  cases,  except  treason,  felony,  breach 
of  the  peace,  be  privileged  from  arrest  during  their  at- 
tendance at  the  session  of  their  respective  houses,  and 
in  going  to  or  returning  from  the  same;  and  for  any 
speech  or  debate  in  either  house,  they  shall  not  be 
questioned  in  any  other  place. 


The  Constitution.  235 

2.  No  senator  or  representative  shall,  during  the 
time  for  which  he  was  elected,  be  appointed  to  any 
civil  office  under  the  authority  of  the  United  States, 
which  shall  have  been  created,  or  the  emoluments 
whereof  shall  have  been  increased,  during  such  time; 
and  no  person  holding  any  office  under  the  United 
States  shall  be  a  member  of  either  house  during  his 
continuance  in  office. 

Section  VIL     Mode  of  Passing  Laws. 

1.  All  bills  for  raising  revenue  shall  originate  in  the 
House  of  Representatives;  but  the  Senate  may  pro- 
pose or  concur  with  amendments,  as  on  other  bills. 

2.  Every  bill  which  shall  have  passed  the  House  of 
Representatives  and  the  Senate  shall,  before  it  become 
a  law,  be  presented  to  the   President  of  the   United 
States;  if  he  approve,  he  shall  sign  it;  but  if  not,  he 
shall   return    it,  with    his   objections,  to   that  house  in 
which  it  shall  have  originated,  who  shall  enter  the  ob- 
jections at  large  on  their  journal,  and  proceed  to  re- 
consider it.     If,  after  such  reconsideration,  two-thirds 
of  that  house  shall  agree  to  pass  the  bill,  it  shall  be 
sent,  together  with  the  objections,  to  the  other  house, 
by  which  it  shall  likewise  be  reconsidered,  and  if  ap- 
proved by  two-thirds  of  that  house,  it  shall  become  a 
law.     But  in  all  such  cases  the  votes  of  both  houses 
shall  be  determined  by  yeas  and  nays,  and  the  names 
of  the  persons  voting  for  and  against  the  bill  shall  be  en- 
tered on  the  journal  of  each  house  respectively.     If  any 
bill  shall  not  be  returned  by  the  President  within  ten 


236  Appendix  B. 

days  (Sundays  excepted)  after  it  shall  have  been  pre- 
sented to  him,  the  same  shall  be  a  law  in  like  manner 
as  if  he  had  signed  it,  unless  the  Congress  by  their  ad- 
journment prevent  its  return,  in  which  case  it  shall  not 
be  a  law. 

3.  Every  order,  resolution,  or  vote  to  which  the  con- 
currence of  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives 
may  be  necessary  (except  on  a  question  of  adjourn- 
ment) shall  be  presented  to  the  President  of  the  United 
States ;  and  before  the  same  shall  take  effect,  shall  be 
approved  by  him,  or,  being  disapproved  by  him,  shall 
be  repassed  by  two-thirds  of  the  Senate  and  House  of 
Representatives,  according  to  the  rules  and  limitations 
prescribed  in  the  case  of  a  bill. 

Section  VIII.     Powers  granted  to  Congress}- 
The  Congress  shall  have  power : 

1.  To  lay  and  collect  taxes,  duties,  imposts,  and  ex- 
cises, to  pay  the  debts  and  provide  for  the  common  de- 
fense and  general  welfare  of  the  United  States ;  but  all 
duties,  imposts,  and  excises  shall  be  uniform  throughout 
the  United  States ; 

2.  To  borrow  money  on  the  credit  of  the  United 
States  ; 

3.  To  regulate  commerce  with  foreign  nations,  and 
among  the  several  States,  and  with  the  Indian  tribes ; 

4.  To  establish  a  uniform  rule  of  naturalization,  and 
uniform  laws  on  the  subject  of  bankruptcies,  throughout 
the  United  States ; 

i  Compare  §§  VIII  and  IX  with  Confed.  Art.  IX;  clause  i  of  §  VIH  with 
Confed.  Art.  VIII;  and  clause  12  of  §  VIII  with  Confed.  Art.  VII. 


The  Constitution.  237 

5.  To  coin  money,  regulate  the  value  thereof  and  of 
foreign  coin,  and  fix  the  standard  of  weights  and  meas- 
ures ; 

6.  To  provide  for  the  punishment  of  counterfeiting 
the  securities  and  current  coin  of  the  United  States; 

7.  To  establish  post-offices  and  post-roads; 

8.  To  promote  the  progress  of  science  and  useful 
arts,  by  securing  for  limited  times  to  authors  and   in- 
ventors the  exclusive  right  to  their  respective  writings 
and  discoveries ; 

9.  To  constitute  tribunals  inferior  to  the  Supreme 
Court ; 

10.  To  define  and  punish  felonies  committed  on  the 
high  seas,  and  offenses  against  the  law  of  nations; 

11.  To  declare  war,  grant  letters  of  marque  and  re- 
prisal, and  make  rules  concerning  captures  on  land  and 
water ; 

12.  To  raise  and  support  armies;  but  no  appropria- 
tion of  money  to  that  use  shall  be  for  a  longer  term 
than  two  years ; 

13.  To  provide  and  maintain  a  navy; 

14.  To  make  rule-s  for  the  government  and  regula- 
tion of  the  land  naval  forces ; 

15.  To  provide  for  calling  forth  the  militia  to  exe- 
cute the  laws  of  the  Union,  suppress  insurrections,  and 
repel  invasions ; 

1 6.  To  provide  for  organizing,  arming,   and  disci- 
plining the  militia,  and  for  governing  such  part  of  them 
as  may  be  employed  in  the  service  of  the  United  States, 
reserving  to  the  States  respectively  the  appointment  of 


238  Appendix  B. 

the  officers,  and  the  authority  of  training  the  militia 
according  to  the  discipline  prescribed  by  Congress; 

17.  To    exercise    exclusive   legislation,  in    all    cases 
whatsoever,  over  such  district  (not  exceeding  ten  miles 
square)  as  may,  by  cession  of  particular  States  and  the 
acceptance  of  Congress,  become  the  seat  of  govern- 
ment of  the  United  States,  and  to  exercise  like  author- 
ity  over  all  places  purchased,  by  the   consent  of  the 
Legislature  of  the  State  in  which  the  same  shall  be,  foi 
the  erection   of  forts,  magazines,  arsenals,  dock-yards, 
and  other  needful  buildings;  and 

1 8.  To  make  all  laws  which  shall  be  necessary  and 
proper  for  carrying  into  execution  the  foregoing  powers, 
and  all  other  powers  vested  by  this  Constitution  in  the 
government  of  the  United  States,  or  in  any  department 
or  office  thereof. 

Section  IX.     Powers  denied  to  the  United  States. 

1.  The  migration  or  importation  of  such  persons  as 
any  of  the  States  now  existing  shall  think  proper  to  ad- 
mit shall  not  be  prohibited  by  the  Congress  prior  to 
the  year  one  thousand  eight  hundred  and   eight;  but  a 
tax  or  duty  may  be  imposed  on  such  importation,  not 
exceeding  ten  dollars  for  each  person. 

2.  The  privilege  of  the  writ  of  habeas  corpus  shall 
not  be  suspended  unless  when,  in  case  of  rebellion  or 
invasion,  the  public  safety  may  require  it. 

3.  No  bill  of  attainder,  or  ex-post-facto  law,  shall  be 
passed. 

4.  No  capitation  or  other  direct  tax  shall  be  laid, 


The  Constitution.  239 

unless  in  proportion  to  the  census  or  enumeration  here- 
in before  directed  to  be  taken. 

5.  No  tax  or  duty  shall  be  laid  on  articles  exported 
from  any  State. 

6.  No  preference  shall  be  given  by  any  regulation  of 
commerce  or  revenue  to  the  ports  of  one  State  over 
those  of  another;  nor  shall  vessels  bound  to  or  from 
one  State  be  obliged  to  enter,  clear,  or  pay  duties  in 
another. 

7.  No  money  shall  be  drawn  from  the  treasury  but 
in  consequence  of  appropriations  made  by  law;  and  a 
regular  statement  and  account  of  the  receipts  and  ex- 
penditures of  all  public  money  shall  be  published  from 
time  to  time. 

8.  No  title  of  nobility  shall  be  granted  by  the  United 
States;  and  no  person  holding  any  office  of  profit  or 
trust  under  them  shall,  without  the  consent  of  the  Con- 
gress, accept  of  any  present,  emolument,  office,  or  title 
of  any  kind  whatever,  from  any  king,  prince,  or  for- 
eign state. 

Section  X.     Powers  denied  to  the  States.1 

1.  No  State  shall  enter  into  any  treaty,  alliance,  or 
confederation;  grant  letters   of  marque  and  reprisal; 
coin  money ;  emit  bills  of  credit ;  make  any  thing  but  gold 
and  silver  coin  a  tender  in  payment  of  debts ;  pass  any 
bill  of  attainder,  eoc-post-facto  law,  or  law  impairing  the 
obligation  of  contracts ;  or  grant  any  title  of  nobility. 

2.  No  State  shall,  without  the  consent  of  the  Con 

1  Compare  Article  I,  §  X  with   Confed.  Art.  VI- 


240  Appendix  B. 

gress,  lay  any  imposts  or  duties  on  imports  or  exports, 
except  what  may  be  absolutely  necessary  for  executing 
its  inspection  laws ;  and  the  net  produce  of  all  duties 
and  imposts  laid  by  any  State  on  imports  or  exports 
shall  be  for  the  use  of  the  treasury  of  the  United  States, 
and  all  such  laws  shall  be  subject  to  the  revision  and 
control  of  the  Congress. 

3.  No  State  shall,  without  the  consent  of  Congress, 
lay  any  duty  of  tonnage,  keep  troops  or  ships  of  war  in 
time  of  peace,  enter  into  any  agreement  or  compact 
with  another  State  or  with  a  foreign  power,  or  engage 
in  war  unless  actually  invaded,  or  in  such  imminent 
danger  as  will  not  admit  of  delays. 

ARTICLE  II.     EXECUTIVE  DEPARTMENT.1 
Section  I.     President  and  Vice -President. 

1.  The  executive  power  shall  be  vested  in  a  Presi- 
dent of  the  United  States  of  America.     He  shall  hold 
his  office  during  the  term  of  four  years,  and,  together 
with  the  Vice- President,  chosen  for  the  same  term,  be 
elected  as  follows : 

2.  Each   State  shall  appoint,  in  such  manner  as  the 
Legislature  thereof  may  direct,  a  number  of  electors, 
equal  to  the  whole  number  of  senators  and  representa- 
tives to  which  the  State  may  be  entitled  in  the  Congress ; 
but  no  senator  or  representative,  or  person  holding  an 
office  of  trust  or  profit  under  the  United  States,  shall 
be  appointed  an  elector. 

3.  [The  electors  shall  meet  in  their  respective  States, 

1  Compare  Article  II  with    Corfec  Art.  X. 


The  Constitution.  241 

and  vote  by  ballot  for  two  persons,  of  whom  one  at 
least  shall  not  be  an  inhabitant  of  the  same  State  with 
themselves.  And  they  shall  make  a  list  of  all  the  per- 
sons voted  for,  and  of  the  number  of  votes  for  each ; 
which  list  they  shall  sign  and  certify,  and  transmit, 
sealed,  to  the  seat  of  the  government  of  the  United 
States,  directed  to  the  President  of  the  Senate.  The 
President  of  the  Senate  shall,  in  the  presence  of  the 
Senate  and  House  of  Representatives,  open  all  the  cer- 
tificates, and  the  votes  shall  then  be  counted.  The 
person  having  the  greatest  number  of  votes  shall  be  the 
President,  if  such  number  be  a  majority  of  the  whole 
number  of  electers  appointed;  and  if  there  be  more 
than  one  who  have  such  majority,  and  have  an  equal 
number  of  votes,  then  the  House  of  Representatives 
shall  immediately  choose  by  ballot  one  of  them  for 
President ;  and  if  no  person  have  a  majority,  then,  from 
the  five  highest  on  the  list,  the  said  House  shall  in  like 
manner  choose  the  President.  But  in  choosing  the 
President,  the  votes  shall  be  taken  by  States,  the  repre- 
sentation from  each  State  having  one  vote ;  a  quorum 
for  this  purpose  shall  consist  of  a  member  or  members 
from  two-thirds  of  the  States,  and  a  majority  of  all  the 
States  shall  be  necessary  to  a  choice.  In  every  case, 
after  the  choice  of  the  President,  the  person  having  the 
greatest  number  of  votes  of  the  electors  shall  be  the 
Vice-President.  But  if  there  should  remain  two  or 
more  who  have  equal  votes,  the  Senate  shall  choose 
from  them  by  ballot  the  Vice-President.]  1 

1  Altered  by  the  Xllth  Amendment. 

16 


242  Appendix  B. 

4.  The  Congress  may  determine  the  time  of  choosing 
the  electors,  and  the  day  on  which  they  shall  give  their 
votes,  which    day  shall  be  the   same   throughout    the 
United  States. 

5.  No  person  except  a  natural-born  citizen,  or  a  citi- 
zen of  the  United  States  at  the  time  of  the  adoption  of 
this  Constitution,  shall  be  eligible  to  the  office  of  Presi- 
dent; neither  shall  any  person  be  eligible  to  that  office 
who  shall  not  have  attained  to  the  age  of  thirty-five 
years,  and  been  fourteen  years  a  resident  within  the 
United  States. 

6.  In  case  of  the  removal  of  the  President  from  of- 
fice, or  of  his   death,  resignation,  or   inability  to    dis- 
charge the  powers  and  duties  of  the  said  office,  the 
same  shall  devolve  on  the  Vice-President;  and  the  Con- 
gress may  by  law  provide  for  the  case   of  removal, 
death,  resignation,  or  inability,  both   of  the    President 
and  Vice- President,  declaring  what  officer   shall  then 
act  as  President ;  and  such  officer  shall  act  accordingly, 
until  the  disability  be  removed  or  a  President  shall  be 
elected. 

7.  The   President  shall,  at  stated  times,  receive  for 
his  services  a  compensation,  which  shall  neither  be  in- 
creased nor  diminished  during  the  period  for  which  he 
shall  have  been  elected,  and  he  shall  not  receive  within 
that   period    any  other  emolument   from    the    United 
States,  or  any  of  them. 

8.  Before  he  enter  on  the  execution  of  his  office,  he 
shall  take  the  following  oath  or  affirmation : 

"  I  do  solemnly  swear  (or  affirm)  that  I  will  faith- 


The  Constitution.  243 

fully  execute  the  office  of  President  of  the  United 
States,  and  will,  to  the  best  of  my  ability,  preserve,  pro- 
tect, and  defend  the  Constitution  of  the  United  States." 

Section  II.     Powers  of  the  President. 

1.  The  President  shall  be  commander- in-chief  of  the 
army  and  navy  of  the  United  States,  and  of  the  militia 
of  the  several  States  when  called  into  the  actual  serv- 
ice of  the  United  States;  he  may  require  the  opinion 
in  writing  of  the  principal  officer  in  each  of  the  execu- 
tive departments  upon  any  subject  relating  to  the  du- 
ties of  their  respective  offices ;  and  he  shall  have  power 
to  grant  reprieves  and  pardons  for  offenses  against  the 
United  States,  except  in  cases  of  impeachment. 

2.  He  shall  have  power,  by  and  with  the  advice  and 
consent  of  the  Senate,  to  make  treaties,  provided  two- 
thirds  of  the  senators  present  concur;  and  he  shall 
nominate,  and  by  and  with  the  advice  and  consent  of 
the  Senate,  shall  appoint  ambassadors,  other  public  min- 
isters and  consuls,  judges  of  the  Supreme   Court,  and 
all  other  officers  of  the  United  States,  whose  appoint- 
ments are  not  herein  otherwise  provided  for  and  which 
shall  be  established  by  law ;  but  the  Congress  may  by 
law  vest  the  appointment  of  such  inferior  officers  as 
they  think  proper  in  the  President  alone,  in  the  courts 
of  law,  or  in  the  heads  of  departments. 

3.  The  President  shall  have  power  to  fill  up  all  va- 
cancies that  may  happen  during  the  recess  of  the  Sen- 
ate, by  granting  commissions,  which  shall  expire  at  the 
end  of  their  next  session. 


244  Appendix  B. 

Section  III.  Duties  of  the  President. 
He  shall,  from  time  to  time,  give  to  the  Congress  in- 
formation of  the  state  of  the  Union,  and  recommend  to 
their  consideration  such  measures  as  he  shall  judge  nec- 
essary and  expedient;  he  may,  on  extraordinary  occa- 
sions, convene  both  houses,  or  either  of  them ;  and  in 
case  of  disagreement  between  them,  with  respect  to  the 
time  of  adjournment,  he  may  adjourn  them  to  such 
time  as  he  shall  think  proper ;  he  shall  receive  ambassa- 
dors and  other  public  ministers ;  he  shall  take  care  that 
the  laws  be  faithfully  executed,  and  shall  commission 
all  the  officers  of  the  United  States. 

Section  IV.     Impeachment  of  the  President. 
The  President,  Vice-President,  and  all  civil  officers 
of  the  United  States  shall  be  removed  from  office  on 
impeachment  for  and  conviction  of  treason,  bribery,  or 
other  high  crimes  and  misdemeanors. 

ARTICLE  III.     JUDICIAL  DEPARTMENT.1 

Section  I.  United  States  Courts. 
The  judicial  power  of  the  United  States  shall  be 
vested  in  one  Supreme  Court,  and  in  such  inferior 
courts  as  Congress  may  from  time  to  time  ordain  and 
establish.  The  judges,  both  of  the  supreme  and  in- 
ferior courts,  shall  hold  their  offices  during  good  be- 
havior; and  shall,  at  stated  times,  receive  for  their  serv- 
ices a  compensation,  which  shall  not  be  diminished 
during  their  continuance  in  office. 

1  The  Confederacy  had  no  such  provision  as  Article  III  of  the  Constitution, 
except  the  attempt  to  make  a  Congressional  Court  in  Cor.fed.  Art.  IX. 


The  Constitution.  245 

Section  II.     jurisdiction  of  the  United  .States  Courts. 

1.  The  judicial  power  shall  extend  to  all  cases  in  la\v 
and  equity  arising  under  this  Constitution,  the  laws  of 
the  United  States,  and  treaties  made  or  which  shall  be 
made,  under  their  authority ;  to  all  cases  affecting  am- 
bassadors, other  public  ministers,  and  consuls;  to  all 
cases  of  admiralty  and  maritime  jurisdiction;  to  con- 
troversies to  which  the  United  States  shall  be  a  party; 
to  controversies  between  two  or  more  States ;  between 
a  State  and  citizens  of  another  State ;  between  citizens 
of  different  States ;  between  citizens  of  the  same  State 
claiming  lands  under  grants  of  different  States ;  and  be- 

;  tween   a  State,   or   the   citizens    thereof,    and   foreign 
states,  citizens,  or  subjects.1 

2.  In  all  cases  affecting  ambassadors,  other  public 
ministers,  and  consuls,  and  those  in  which  a  State  shall 
be  a  party,  the  Supreme   Court  shall  have  original  ju- 
risdiction.    In  all  the  other  cases  before  mentioned,  the 
Supreme  Court  shall  have  appellate  jurisdiction,  both  as 
to  law  and  fact,  with  such  exceptions   and  under  such 
regulations  as  the  Congress  shall  make. 

3.  The  trial  of  all  crimes,  except  in  cases  of  impeach- 
ment, shall  be  by  jury;  and  such  trial  shall  be  held  in 

he  State  where  the  said  crimes  shall  have  been  com- 
mitted ;  but  when  not  committed  within  any  State,  u:e 
trial  shall  be  at  such  place  or  places  as  the  Congress 
may  by  law  have  directed. 

Section  III.      Treason. 
i.  Treason  against  the  United  States  shall  consist 

1  Altered  by  XI th  Amendment. 


246  Appendix  B. 

only  in  levying  war  against  them,  or  in  adhering  to 
their  enemies,  giving  them  aid  and  comfort.  No  per- 
son shall  be  convicted  of  treason  unless  on  the  testi- 
mony of  two  witnesses  to  the  same  overt  act,  or  on 
confession  in  open  court. 

2.  The  Congress  shall  have  power  to  declare  the 
punishment  of  treason ;  but  no  attainder  of  treason  shall 
work  corruption  of  blood,  or  forfeiture,  except  during 
the  life  of  the  person  attainted. 

ARTICLE  IV.     THE  STATES  AND  THE  FEDERAL  GOV- 
ERNMENT^ 

Section  I.     State  Records. 

Full  faith  and  credit  shall  be  given  in  each  State  to 
the  public  acts,  records,  and  judicial  proceedings  of 
every  other  State.  And  the  Congress  may,  by  general 
laws,  prescribe  the  manner  in  which  such  acts,  records, 
and  proceedings  shall  be  proved,  and  the  effect  thereof. 

Section  II.     Privileges  of  Citizens,  etc. 

1.  The  citizens  of  each  State  shall  be  entitled  to  all 
privileges  and  immunities  of  citizens   in    the   several 
States. 

2.  A  person  charged  in  any  State  with  treason,  fel- 
ony, or  other  crime,  who  shall  flee  from  justice  and  be 
found  in  anothei  State,  shall,  on  demand  of  the  execu- 
tive authority  of  the  State  from  which  he  fled,  be  de- 
livered up,  to  be  removed  to  the  State  having  jurisdic- 
tion of  the  crime. 

1  Compare  Article  IV  with  Confed.  Art.  IV. 


The  Constitution.  247 

3.  No  person  held  to  service  or  labor  in  one  State, 
under  the  laws  thereof,  escaping  into  another,  shall,  in 
consequence  of  any  law  or  regulation  therein,  be  dis- 
charged from  such  service  or  labor,  but  shall  be  deliv- 
ered up  on  claim  of  the  party  to  whom  such  service  or 
labor  may  be  due. 

Section  III.     New  States  and  Territories.^ 

1.  New  States  may  be  admitted  by  the  Congress  into 
this  Union ;  but  no  new  State  shall  be  formed  or  erected 
within  the  jurisdiction  of  any  other  State ;  nor  any  State 
be  formed  by  the  junction  of  two  or  more  States,  or 
parts  of  States,  without  the  consent  of  the  Legislatures 
of  the  States  concerned,  as  well  as  of  the  Congress. 

2.  The  Congress  shall  have  power  to  dispose  of,  and 
make  all  needful  rules  and  regulations  respecting,  the 
territory  or   other  property  belonging  to  the  United 
States;  and  nothing  in  this   Constitution  shall  be  so 
construed  as    to   prejudice  any  claims  of  the  United 
States  or  of  any  particular  State. 

Section  IV.      Guarantee  to  the  States. 

The  United  States  shall  guarantee  to  every  State  in 
this  Union  a  republican  form  of  government,  and  shall 
protect  each  of  them  against  invasion;  and,  on  appli- 
cation of  the  Legislature,  or  of  the  executive  (when  the 
Legislature  cannot  be  convened),  against  domestic  vio- 
lence. 

l  Compare  Article  IV,  §  HI  with  Confed.  Art.  XL 


248  Appendix  B. 

ARTICLE  V.  POWER  OF  AMENDMENT.1 
The  Congress,  whenever  two-thirds  of  both  Houses 
shall  deem  it  necessary,  shall  propose  amendments  to 
this  Constitution,  or,  on  the  application  of  the  Legis- 
latures of  two-thirds  of  the  several  States,  shall  call  a 
convention  for  proposing  amendments,  which,  in  either 
case,  shall  be  valid  to  all  intents  and  purposes  as  part 
of  this  Constitution,  when  ratified  by  the  Legislatures 
of  three-fourths  of  the  several  States,  or  by  conventions 
in  three-fourths  thereof,  as  the  one  or  the  other  mode 
of  ratification  maybe  proposed  by  Congress;  provided 
that  no  amendment  which  may  be  made  prior  to  the 
year  one  thousand  eight  hundred  and  eight  shall  in  any 
manner  affect  the  first  and  fourth  clauses  in  the  ninth 
section  of  the  first  Article ;  and  that  no  State,  without 
its  consent,  shall  be  deprived  of  its  equal  suffrage  in  the 
Senate. 

ARTICLE  VI.     PUBLIC  DEBT,  SUPREMACY  OF  THE  CON- 
STITUTION, OATH  OF  OFFICE,  RELIGIOUS  TEST.2 

1.  All   debts  contracted  and    engagements  entered 
into  before  the  adoption  of  this   Constitution  shall  be 
as  valid  against  the  United  States  under  this  Constitu- 
tion as  under  the  Confederation. 

2.  This   Constitution,  and  the  laws  of   the  United 
States  which  shall  be  made  in  pursuance  thereof,  and 
all  treaties  made,  or  which  shall  be  made,  under  the 

1  Compare  Article  V  with  Confed.  Art.  XIII  (last  sentence). 

2  Compare   Article  VI,  clause  i,  with  Confed.  Art.  XII;   and  clauses  2  and 
3  with  Confed.  Art.  XIII  and  addendum,  "And  whereas,"  etc. 


The  Constitution.  249 

authority  of  the  United  States,  shall  be  the  supreme 
law  of  the  land;  and  the  judges  in  every  State  shall  be 
bound  thereby,  anything  in  the  Constitution  or  laws 
of  any  State  to  the  contrary  notwithstanding. 

3.  The  senators  and  representatives  before-men- 
tioned, and  the  members  of  the  several  State  Legisla- 
tures, and  all  executive  and  judicial  officers,  both  of  the 
United  States  and  of  the  several  States,  shall  be  bound 
by  oath  or  affirmation  to  support  this  Constitution; 
but  no  religious  test  shall  ever  be  required  as  a  qualifi- 
cation to  any  office  or  public  trust  under  the  United 
States. 

ARTICLE  VII.     RATIFICATION  OF  THE  CONSTITUTION. 

The  ratifications  of  the  Conventions  of  nine  States 
shall  be  sufficient  for  the  establishment  of  this  Consti- 
tution between  the  States  so  ratifying  the  same. 

Done  in  Convention,  by  the  unanimous  consent  of 
the  States  present,  the  seventeenth  day  of  September, 
in  the  year  of  our  Lord  one  thousand  seven  hundred 
and  eighty-seven,  and  of  the  Independence  of  the 
United  States  of  America  the  twelfth. 


AMENDMENTS  TO  THE  CONSTITUTION. 

t 
ARTICLE  I. 

Congress  shall  make  no  law  respecting  an  establish- 
ment of  religion,  or  prohibiting  the  free  exercise  there- 
of; or  abridging  the  freedom  of  speech,  or  of  the  press ; 


2 SO  Appendix  B. 

or  the  right  of  the  people  peaceably  to  assemble,  and 
to  petition  the  government  for  a  redress  of  grievances. 

ARTICLE  II. 

A  well  regulated  militia  being  necessary  to  the  se- 
curity of  a  free  state,  the  right  of  the  people  to  keep  and 
bear  arms  shall  not  be  infringed. 

ARTICLE  III. 

No  soldier  shall,  in  time  of  peace,  be  quartered  in 
any  house,  without  the  consent  of  the  owner,  nor  in 
time  of  war,  but  in  a  manner  to  be  prescribed  by  law. 

ARTICLE  IV. 

The  right  of  the  people  to  be  secure  in  their  persons, 
houses,  papers,  and  effects,  against  unreasonable 
searches  and  seizures  shall  not  be  violated,  and  no 
warrants  shall  issue  but  upon  probable  cause,  supported 
by  oath  or  affirmation,  and  particularly  describing  the 
place  to  be  searched,  and  the  persons  or  things  to  be 
seized. 

ARTICLE  V. 

No  person  shall  be  held  to  answer  for  a  capital,  or 
otherwise  infamous  crime,  unless  on  a  presentment  or 
indictment  of  a  grand  jury,  except  in  cases  arising  in 
the  land  or  naval  forces,  or  in  the  militia  when  in  act- 
ive service  in  time  of  war  or  public  danger  \  nor  shall 
any  person  be  subject  for  the  same  offense  to  be  twice 
put  in  jeopardy  of  life  or  limb ;  nor  shall  be  compelled, 
in  any  criminal  case,  to  be  a  witness  against  himself; 
nor  be  deprived  of  life,  liberty,  or  property,  without  due 


The  Constitution.  2$  I 

process  of  law ;  nor  shall  private  property  be  taken  for 
public  use  without  just  compensation. 

ARTICLE  VI. 

In  all  criminal  prosecutions,  the  accused  shall  enjoy 
the  right  to  a  speedy  and  public  trial,  by  an  impartial 
jury  of  the  State  and  district  wherein  the  crime  shall 
have  been  committed,  which  district  shall  have  been 
previously  ascertained  by  law,  and  to  be  informed  of 
the  nature  and  cause  of  the  accusation ;  to  be  con- 
fronted with  the  witnesses  against  him;  to  have  com- 
pulsory process  for  obtaining  witnesses  in  his  favor; 
and  to  have  the  assistance  of  counsel  for  his  defense. 

ARTICLE  VII. 

In  suits  at  common  law,  where  the  value  in  con- 
troversy shall  exceed  twenty  dollars,  the  right  of  trial  by 
jury  shall  be  preserved;  and  no  fact  tried  by  a  jury 
shall  be  otherwise  re-examined  in  any  court  of  the 
United  States  than  according  to  the  rules  of  the  com- 
mon law. 

ARTICLE  VIII. 

Excessive  bail  shall  not  be  required,  nor  excessive 
fines  imposed,  nor  cruel  and  unusual  punishment  in- 
flicted. 

ARTICLE  IX. 

The  enumeration  in  the  Constitution  of  certain  rights 
shall  not  be  construed  to  deny  or  disparage  others  re- 
tained by  the  people. 


252  Appendix  B. 

ARTICLE  X.1 

The  powers  not  granted  to  the  United  States  by  the 
Constitution,  nor  prohibited  by  it  to  the  States,  are  re- 
served to  the  States  respectively  or  to  the  people. 

ARTICLE  XI.2 

The  judicial  power  of  the  United  States  shall  not  be 
construed  to  extend  to  any  suit  in  law  or  equity,  com- 
menced or  prosecuted  against  one  of  the  United  States 
by  citizens  of  another  State,  or  by  citizens  or  subjects 
of  any  foreign  State. 

ARTICLE  XII.3 

i.  The  electors  shall  meet  in  their  respective  States, 
and  vote  by  ballot  for  President  and  Vice-President, 
one  of  whom,  at  least,  shall  not  be  an  inhabitant  of  the 
same  State  with  themselves;  they  shall  name  in  their 
ballots  the  person  voted  for  as  President,  and  in  distinct 
ballots  the  person  voted  for  as  Vice-President,  and  they 
shall  make  distinct  lists  of  all  persons  voted  for  as 
President,  and  of  all  persons  voted  for  as  Vice- 
President,  and  of  the  number  of  votes  for  each, 
which  lists  they  shall  sign  and  certify,  and  transmit 
sealed  to  the  seat  of  government  of  the  United  States, 
directed  to  the  President  of  the  Senate;  the  President 

1  Compare   the    Xth   Amendment   with   Confed.    Art.    II.     The   first    ten 
Amendments  were  proposed  by  Congress,  September  25th,  1789,  and  declared 
in  force,  December  isth,  1791. 

2  Proposed   by  Congress    March   sth,  1794,  and   declared  in  force  January 
8th,  1798. 

3  Proposed  by  Congress  December  i2th,  1803,  and  declared  in  force  Septem- 
ber 25th,  1804. 


The  Constitution.  253 

of  the  Senate  shall,  in  the  presence  of  the  Senate  and 
House  of  Representatives,  open  all  the  certificates,  and 
the  votes  shall  then  be  counted ;  the  person  having  the 
greatest  number  of  votes  for  President  shall  be  the 
President,  if  such  number  be  a  majority  of  the  whole 
number  of  electors  appointed;  and  if  no  person  have 
such  majority,  then  from  the  persons  having  the  highest 
numbers,  not  exceeding  three,  on  the  list  of  those  voted 
for  as  President,  the  House  of  Representatives  shall 
choose  immediately  by  ballot  the  President.  But  in 
choosing  the  President,  the  votes  shall  be  taken  by 
States,  the  representation  from  each  State  having  one 
vote ;  a  quorum  for  this  purpose  shall  consist  of  a  mem- 
ber or  members  from  two-thirds  of  the  States,  and  a 
majority  of  all  the  States  shall  be  necessary  to  a  choice. 
And  if  the  House  of  Representatives  shall  not  choose  a 
President,  whenever  the  right  of  choice  shall  devolve 
upon  them,  before  the  fourth  day  of  March  next  fol- 
lowing, then  the  Vice-President  shall  act  as  President, 
as  in  the  case  of  death  or  other  constitutional  disability 
of  the  President. 

2.  The  person  having  the  greatest  number  of  votes 
as  Vice-President  shall  be  the  Vice-President,  if  such 
number  be  a  majority  of  the  whole  number  of  electors 
appointed,  and  if  no  person  have  a  majority,  then  from 
the  two  highest  numbers  on  the  list  the  Senate  shall 
choose  the  Vice-President;  a  quorum  for  the  purpose 
shall  consist  of  two-thirds  of  the  whole  number  of  sen- 
ators, and  a  majority  of  the  whole  number  shall  be  nec- 
essary to  a  choice. 


254  Appendix  B. 

3.  But  no  person  constitutionally  ineligible  to  the 
office  of  President  shall  be  eligible  to  that  of  Vice-Pres- 
ident of  the  United  States. 

ARTICLE  XIII.1 

1.  Neither  slavery  nor  involuntary  servitude,  except 
s  a  punishment  for  crime  whereof  the  party  shall  have 

been   duly  convicted,  shall   exist  within    the    United 
States,  or  any  place  subject  to  their  jurisdiction. 

2.  Congress  shall  have  power  to  enforce  this  article 
by  appropriate  legislation. 

ARTICLE  XIV.2 

1.  All   persons   born  or  naturalized  in  the  United 
States,  and  subject  to  the  jurisdiction  thereof,  are  citi- 
zens of  the  United  States  and  of  the  State  wherein  they 
reside.     No  State  shall  make  or  enforce  any  law  which 
shall  abridge  the  privileges  or  immunities  of  citizens  of 
the  United  States ;  nor  shall  any  State  deprive  any  per- 
son of  life,  liberty,  or  property,  without  due  process  of 
law,  nor  deny  to  any  person  within  its  jurisdiction  the 
equal  protection  of  the  laws. 

2.  Representatives  shall  be  apportioned  among  the 
several  States  according  to  their  respective  numbers, 
counting  the  whole  number  of  persons  in  each  State, 
excluding   Indians  not  taxed.     But  when  the  right  to 
vote  at  any  election  for  the  choice  of  electors  for  Presi- 

1  Proposed   by  Congress   February  ist,  1865,  and  declared  in  force  Decem 
ber  i8th,  1865. 

2  Proposed  by  Congres*  June  i6th,  1866,  and  declared  in  force  July  28th, 
1868. 


The  Constitution.  255 

dent  and  Vice- President  of  the  United  States,  represent- 
atives in  Congress,  the  executive  and  judicial  officers 
of  a  State,  or  the  members  of  the  Legislature  thereof, 
is  denied  to  any  of  the  male  members  of  such  State,  be- 
ing twenty-one  years  of  age,  and  citizens  of  the  United 
States,  or  in  any  way  abridged,  except  for  participation 
in  rebellion  or  other  crime,  the  basis  of  representation 
therein  shall  be  reduced  in  the  proportion  which  the 
number  of  such  male  citizens  shall  bear  to  the  whole 
number  of  male  citizens  twenty-one  years  of  age  in  such 
State. 

3.  No  person  shall  be  a  senator  or  representative  in 
Congress,  or  elector  of  President  and  Vice-President,  or 
holding  any  office,  civil  or  military,  under  the  United 
States,  or   under   any  State,  who,  having   previously 
taken  an  oath,  as  a  member  of  Congress,  or  as  an  offi- 
cer of  the  United  States,  or  as  a  member  of  any  State 
Legislature,  or  as  an  executive  or  judicial  officer  of  any 
State,  to  support  the  Constitution  of  the  United  States, 
shall  have  engaged  in  insurrection  or  rebellion  against 
the  same,  or  given  aid  and  comfort  to  the  enemies 
thereof.     But  Congress  may,  by  a  vote  of  two-thirds  of 
each  House,  remove  such  disability. 

4.  The  validity  of  the  public  debt  of  the  United 
States,  authorized  by  law,  including  debts  incurred  for 
payment  of  pensions  and  bounties  for  services  in  sup- 
pressing  insurrection  or  rebellion,  shall  not  be  ques 
tioned.     But  neither  the  United  States  nor  any  State 
shall  assume  or  pay  any  debt  or  obligation  incurred  in 
aid  of  insurrection  or  rebellion  against  the  United  States, 


256  Appendix  B. 

or  any  claim  for  the  loss  or  emancipation  of  any  slave ; 
but  all  such  debts,  obligations,  and  claims  shall  be  held 
illegal  and  void. 

5.  The  Congress  shall  have  power  to  enforce  by  ap- 
propriate legislation  the  provisions  of  this  article. 

ARTICLE  XV.1 

1.  The  right  of  the  citizens  of  the  United  States  to 
vote  shall  not  be  denied  or  abridged  by  the  United 
States  or  any  State  on  account  of  race,  color,  or  previ- 
ous condition  of  servitude. 

2.  The  Congress  shall  have  power  to  enforce  by  ap- 
propriate legislation  the  provisions  of  this  article. 

1  Proposed  by  Congress  February  26th,  1869,  and  declared  in  force  March 
joth,  1 37o. 


Admission  of  the  States. 


257 


APPENDIX  C. 

ADMISSION  OF  THE  STATES.1 


I,  Delaware,2  Dec.  7,  1787. 

1  8.  Louisiana,  April  30,  1  812. 

2.  Pennsylvania,2  Dec.  12, 

19.  Indiana,  Dec.  II,  1816. 

1787. 

20.  Mississippi,  Dec.  10,  1817. 

3.  New  Jersey,2  Dec.  18,  1787. 

21.  Illinois,  Dec.  3,  1818. 

4.  Georgia,2  Jan.  2,  1788. 

22.  Alabama,  Dec.  14,  1819. 

5.  Connecticut,2  Jan.  9,  1788. 

23.  Maine,  March  15,  1820. 

6.  Massachusetts,2  Feb.  7, 

24.  Missouri,  Aug.  10,  1821. 

1788. 

25.  Arkansas,  June  15,  1836. 

7.  Maryland,2  April  28,  1788. 

26.  Michigan,  Jan.  26,  1837. 

8.  South  Carolina,2  May  23, 

27.  Florida,  March  3,  1845. 

1788. 

28.  Texas,  Dec.  29,  1845. 

9.  New  Hampshire,2  June  21, 

29.  Iowa,  Dec.  28,  1846. 

1788. 

30.  Wisconsin,  May  29,  1848. 

10.  Virginia,2  June  26,  1788. 

31.  California,  Sept.  9,  1850. 

II.  New  York,2  July  26,  1788. 

32.  Minnesota,  May  u,  1858. 

12.  North  Carolina,2  Nov.  21, 

33.  Oregon,  Feb.  14,  1859. 

1789. 

34.  Kansas,  Jan.  29,  1861. 

13.  Rhode  Island,2  May  29, 

35.  West  Virginia,  June  19, 

1790. 

1863. 

14.  Kentucky,  June  I,  1792. 

36.  Nevada,  Oct.  31,  1864. 

15.  Vermont,  March  4,  1791. 

37.  Nebraska,  March  I,  1867. 

16.  Tennessee,  June  I,  1796. 

38.  Colorado,  Aug.  I,  1876. 

17.  Ohio,  Nov.  29,  1802. 

1  The  dates  given,  after  the  first  thirteen  States,  are  those  upon  which  the 
admissions  took  effect. 

2  Ratified  the  Constitution  and  became  States. 


258 


Appendix  D. 


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Population  of  the  Sections,  1790-1860    265 


APPENDIX  E. 
POPULATION  OF  THE  SECTIONS,  1790-1860. 


Year. 

Free  States. 

Slave  States. 

1790 

1,968,453 

1,961,374 

l8oO 

2,684,616 

2,621,316 

1810 

3,758,910 

3,480,902 

1820 

5^52,372 

4,485,819 

1830 

7,006,399 

5,848,312 

1840 

9>733>922 

7.334,433 

1850 

I3>599>488 

9,663,997 

1860 

19,128,418 

I2>3!5>372 

266 


Appendix  F. 


APPENDIX  F. 

CONGRESSIONAL  REPRESENTATION  OF  THE  SECTIONS, 
1790-1860. 


Year. 

SENATE. 

HOUSE. 

Free  States. 

Slave  States. 

Free  States. 

Slave  States. 

1790 

14 

12 

35 

3° 

I792 

16 

14 

57 

48    . 

1796 

16 

16 

57 

49 

l8oO 

16 

16 

57 

49 

1804 

18 

16 

77 

65 

l8o8 

18 

16 

77 

65 

1812 

18 

18 

I03 

79 

1816 

20 

18 

104 

79 

1820 

24 

24 

I05 

82 

1824 

24 

24 

123 

9° 

1828 

24 

24 

123 

9° 

1832 

24 

24 

141 

99 

1836 

26 

26 

142 

100 

1840 

26 

26 

142 

IOO 

1844 

26 

26 

J35 

98 

1848 

30 

30 

i39 

91 

1852 

32 

3° 

144 

90 

1856 

32 

3° 

144 

90 

1860 

36 

30 

i47 

90 

To  find  the  Electoral  Votes,  add  together  the  number  of  Senators  and 
Representatives. 


The  Sections  in  1878. 


267 


APPENDIX  G. 

THE  SECTIONS  IN  1878. 


Jj 

Sections. 

Population 

oJ 
rt 

1 

o 

> 

in  1870. 

V 

LTt 

o 

V 

3 

THE  SOUTH  :   (Ala.,  Ark.  ,  Fla.,  Ga.,  Ky., 

La.,  Md.,  Miss.,  N.  C.,  S.  C.,  Tenn., 

Tex.,  Va.,  W.  V.), 

12,032,225 

28 

92 

120 

THE  NORTH-WEST:  (111.,  la.,  Ind.,  Ks., 

Mich.,  Minn.,  Mo.,  Neb.,  O.,  Wis.), 

12,702,299 

20 

98 

118 

THE  MIDDLE  STATES:  (Del.,  N.  J.,  N. 

Y.,  Penn.), 

8,941,625 

8 

68 

76 

NEW    ENGLAND:    (Conn.,    Mass.,    Me., 

N.  H.,  R.  L,  Vt.), 

3,187,924 

12 

28 

40 

THE  PACIFIC:  (Cal.,  Col.,  Nev.,  Or.), 

889,789 

8 

__7 

15 

Total, 

38,925,598 

76 

293 

369 

The  total  population  includes  territories  and  Indians. 


INDEX. 


ABOLITIONISTS,  THE  123,  177, 

178  (note}. 

Abolition  of  Slavery,  The  195. 
Adams,  Chas.  F.  148. 
Adams,  John  18,  27,  39,  40,  47, 

49- 
Adams,   John    Quincy   67,    91, 

95,  101,  128,   134. 
Adams,  Jr.,   John  Quincy  21 1 

(jiote}. 

Alien  Law,  The  44. 
American  Party,  The  160. 
American  Whigs  5. 
Ames,  Fisher  37. 
Amnesty  Proclamations  201. 
Annexation  of  Louisiana  55,  of 

Florida  85,  of  Texas  137-140. 
Anti- Federalist  Party,  The  (see 

Democratic- Republican  ) . 
Anti-Masonic  Party,  The  102. 
Anti-Nebraska  Men  159. 

BANK,  NATIONAL  23,  70,  the 
second  81,  overthrown  by 
Jackson  104-118,  substitutes 
for  133,  155,  192. 

Banks,  Jr.,  N.  P.  161. 

Barbour,  P.  P.  92. 

Barnburners  148. 

Bell,  John  181,  185. 

Birney,  James  G.  130,  137. 

Black  Cockade  Federalist  53. 

Black  Republican  162. 


Blair,  Francis  P.  207. 
"Bloody  Bill,"  The  113. 
Border  Ruffians  163. 
Boyd,  Linn  155,  158. 
Breckinridge,  John  C.  166,  168, 

181,  185. 

Broad  Seal  War,  The  128. 
Brooks,  Preston  S.  165. 
Brown,  B.  Gratz  210,  21 1. 
Brown,  John  177. 
Buchanan,  James  166,  168,  179, 

183. 

Burr,  Aaron  27,  39,  49,  50,  59, 

62,  64. 

Butler,  Benj.  F.  190. 
Butler,  Wm.  O.  147,  150. 


CALHOUN,  JOHN  C.  71,  95,  98, 

104,  108,  113. 

Capital,  The  National  23,  49. 
"  Carpet-Baggers  "  211  («<?/*?). 
Gary,  S.  F.  213. 
Cass,  Lewis  147,  150. 
Caucus  Nominations  49,  94. 
Censure  of  Jackson  117  122,  of 

Tyler  135. 

Chase,  Salmon  P.  192,  205. 
Chase  Trial,  The  58,  59. 
Cherokee  Indian  Case,  The  107, 

112. 

Chesapeake  Case,  The  65. 
Civil  Rights  Bill,  The  199. 

269 


270 


Index. 


Clay,  Henry  71,  76,  81,  83,  84, 
87,  88,  93,  95,  96,  103,  in, 
114,  117,  129,  137,  140. 

Clinton,  l)e  Witt  72,  75. 

Clinton,  George  27,  58,  59,  66, 
68. 

Cobb,  Howell  153. 

Cochrane,  John  C.  193. 

Colfax,  Schuyler  193,  198,  204, 
206,  207. 

Compromise  of  1820  86,  159,  of 
lS5°  J53»  I57>  l63,  Critten- 
den  183. 

Confederacy,  The  6,  its  Articles 
Appendix  A,  its  revision  9. 

Confederate  States  of  America, 
The  184. 

Congress,  Peace  184. 

Congress,  Powers  of  12. 

Conservatives  127. 

Constitution,  The  1 1,  15,  196, 
its  Articles  Appendix  B,  its 
Amendments  20,  34,  58,  184, 
193,  194,  199,  207,  Appen- 
dix B. 

Constitutional  Union  Party, 
The  181. 

Convention  of  1787,  The  10. 

Conventions,  Nominating  III. 

Cooper,  Peter  213. 

Copperheads  194  (note*). 

"Corporal's  Guard,"  The  135. 

Courts,  United  States  12. 

Covode  Investigation,  The  179. 

Crawford,  William  H.  71,  82, 
94,  95,  104. 

Crittenden,  John  J.   183. 

Cuba  173,  180. 

Cumberland  Road,  The  92. 

DALLAS,  GEORGE  M.  138,  140. 
Davis,  Jefferson  184. 
Davis,  John  W.  142. 
Dayton,  Jonathan  36,  42.* 
Dayton,  Wm.  L.  169,  170. 
Debt,  Hamilton's  Settlement  of 
Public  21. 


Democrat  26,  97. 

Democratic  Clubs  30,  34. 

Democratic  Party,  The,  over- 
throws the  United  States 
Bank  106-118,  supports  War 
with  Mexico  138,  ruled  by 
Southern  members  158,  divi- 
sion of  1 80,  opposes  War 
against  the  Rebellion  194, 
opposes  Reconstruction  by 
Congress  207. 

Democratic- Republican  Party, 
The  25,  45,  first  great  suc- 
cess Tfi),  52,  supports  War 
with  England  Ji,  division  of 
80  (see  Democratic  Party). 

Deposits,  Removal  of  115. 

Donelson,  A.  J.  166,  168. 

*'  Dough-faces  "  89  (note}. 

Douglas,  Stephen  A.  176,  180, 
184,  185. 

Draft  Act,  The  (of  1814)  78, 
(of  1863)  192. 

Dred  Scot,  The  Case  of  170, 
1 80,  185. 

Duane,  William  J.  115. 

ELECTORAL  COMMISSION,  THE 

214. 
Electoral   Votes    Disputed   90, 

124,  168,  195,  211,  213. 
Electors,  Mode  of  choosing  18, 

102. 

Ellmaker,  Amos  III,  114. 
Emancipation  191. 
Embargo  Bill,  The  65,  67,  77. 
England  31,  63,  69,  War  against 

73,  difficulties  with  102. 
Era  of  Good  Feeling,  The  92. 
Everett,  Edward  181,  185.' 

FAREWELL    ADDRESS,    Wash- 
ington's 38,  Jackson's  124. 
Fauchet,  Citizen  34. 
Federal  Powers  12. 
Federalist,  The  16. 


Index. 


271 


Federal  Party,  The  14,  25,  27, 
48,  first  great  defeat  49,  53, 
opposes  the  Embargo  67,  and 
War  with  England  74,  be- 
comes extinct  80. 

Filibustering  174. 

Fillmore,  Mi  liar  d  148,  150,  154, 
1 66,  1 68. 

Florida  Purchase,  The  85. 

Floyd,  John  112,  114. 

France  28,  41,  43,  War  against 
47,  treaty  with  58,  claims 
against  102. 

Freedmen's  Bureau,  The  195, 
198,  200. 

Free  Soil  Party,  The  148,  156. 

Free  Trade  88. 

Fremont,  John  C.  167, 168,  190, 

193- 

French  Revolution  25,  28. 
Foot's  Resolution  106. 
Frelinghuysen,  Theodore   137, 

140. 
Fugitive  Slave  Law,  The  154, 

157  (note),  193. 

GENET,  CITIZEN  29,  31. 
Gerry,  Elbridge  72,  75. 
Giddings,  J.  R.  134. 
Graham,  Wm.  A.  156,  157. 
Granger,  Francis  120,  124. 
Grant,  U.  S.  205,  207,  209,  210. 
Greeley,  Horace  210,  211. 
Greenback  Party,  The  213. 
Grow,  Galusha  A.  189. 
Gunboat  System,  The  60. 

HABEAS  CORPUS  62,  192,  197. 

Hale,  John  P,  156. 

Hamilton,    Alexander    16,    19, 

21,  23,  34,  35,  48,  49,  59,  81. 
Hamlin,  Hannibal  iSl,  185. 
Harper's     Ferry    Insurrection, 

The  177. 
Harrison,  William  H.  1 20,  123, 

129,  131,  132. 


Hartford  Convention,  The  78, 

160. 

Hayes,  Rutherford  B.  212,  215. 
Helper's   "Impending  Crisis" 

I78. 
Hendricks,    Thomas    A.    21  1, 

212,  215. 

Henry  Documents,  The  72. 
Homestead  Bill,  The  177,  179, 

190,  199. 
Hunkers  148. 
Hunter,  R.  M.  T.  128. 

IMPEACHMENT  OF  PRESIDENT 

JOHNSON  201,  205. 
"Impending  Crisis,"  The  178. 
Income  Tax  Law,  The  193. 
Independent  Treasury,The  Il8, 

119,  126,  129. 
Ingersoll,  Jared  72,  75. 
Internal  Improvements,  62,  92, 

94,    98,    101,   104,   107,   109, 

129,  133,  136,  145,  146,  155, 

161,  185. 
Internal    Revenue    Law,    The 


JACKSON,  ANDREW  85,  95  97, 

101,    III,    114,    117,    122,    124. 

Jay,  John  16,  20,  30,  33,  35. 
Jay's  Treaty  33,  35,  37,  41. 
Jefferson,   Thomas  20,   25,   27, 

32,  39,  40,  45,  49,  50,  53,  57, 

71,  86,  105,  108. 
Johnson,  Andrew  194,  195,  196, 

200,  205. 

Johnson,  Herschel  V.  180,  185. 
Johnson,  Richard  M.  120,  124, 

I3I- 

Jones,  John  W.  136. 
ulian,  George  W.  156. 

KANSAS  (Pawnee  Constitution) 

163,  (Topeka    Constitution) 

164,  (Lecompton    Constitu- 
tion) 175,  (Wyandot  Const! 
tution)  177,  185. 


2/2 


Index. 


Kansas  Struggle,  The  161-176, 

185. 
Kentucky  Resolutions  (of  1 798) 

46,    (of   1799)   47,    97,    100, 

105,  182. 
King,  Rufus  30,  58,  59,  66,  68, 

82. 

King,  Wm.  R.  156,  157. 
Kitchen  Cabinet,  The  109. 
Know  Nothing  160,  181. 
Knox,  Henry  19. 

LANK,  JOSKTII  181,  185. 
Lecompton  Constitution  175. 
Lee,  Henry  112,  114. 
Lemoyne,  Francis  130. 
Liberal  Republicans  2IO. 
Liberty  Party,  The  130,  143. 
Lincoln,    Abraham    181,    185, 

191,  195,  196. 
Loco-foco  1 20  (note\ 
Loose  Constructionist  I,  14,  97, 

162,  206,  212. 
Lopez  174. 
Louisiana  Purchase,  The  55. 

MACON,   NATHANIEL  54,    58, 

60. 
Madison,  James  10,  16,  45,  63, 

66,  68,  72,  75,  105. 
Mangum,  W.  P.  123. 
Marshall,  John  64. 
Mason  and  Dixon's  Line  86. 
Maysville  Road  Bill,  The  107. 
McClellan,  Geo.  B.  194,  195. 
McLean,  John  in,  120,  124. 
Mexico,  War  with  141,  142. 
"  Midnight  Judges,"  The  55. 
Missouri  Compromise,  The  86, 

88,  89,  159,  163. 
Missouri's  Electoral  Votes  90. 
Monroe  Doctrine,  The  93. 
Monroe,  James  41,  57,   62,  66, 

82,  91,  93. 

Morgan,  William  103. 
Morris,  Thomas  137. 
Muhlenberg,  F.  A.  19,  31. 


NAPOLEONIC  WARS,  THE  60, 

65. 
National  Republican  Party,  The 

96,  103  (see  Whig  Party}. 
Non-Intercourse   Act,  The  68, 

70. 

North,  Lord  5. 
Nullification  105,  108,  112. 
Nullification    Proclamation    of 

Jackson,  The  113,  183. 

OATH,  THE  IRON  CLAD  191. 
O'Conor,  Charles  211  (note'). 
Office,  Tenure  of  53,  105,  141, 

203. 
Orders  in  Council,  The  65,  73, 

77- 
Ordinance    of    Secession,    The 

182. 
Ordinance  of  1787,  The  57,  86, 

144,  195- 

Oregon,  138,  144,  145,  147. 
Orr,  James  L.  175. 
Ostend  Manifesto,  The  174. 

PANIC  OF  1837,  THE  126. 

Party  Names  ;  American  Whig 
5,  Federalist  14,-  Anti-feder- 
alist 14^  Republican  (Demo- 
cratic-Republican)^^, Quids 
6 1,  National  Republican  96, 

v  Democratic  ("Jackson  Men") 

97,  Anti-Masonic  102,  Whig 
1 20,    Loco-foco    1 20    (note), 
Abolitionist     123,    Conserva- 
tive 127,  Liberty  130,  Hunk- 
er 148,  Barnburner  148,  Free 
Soil  148,  Anti-Nebraska  159, 

/  American  (Know  Nothing) 
160,  Republican  162,  Consti- 
tutional Union  181,  Union 
187,  Radical  193,  Copperhead 
194  (note},  Liberal  Republic- 
an 210,  Greenback  213. 

Patterson's  "New  Jersey  Plan" 
10. 

Pawnee  Constitution  163. 


Index. 


273 


Pendleton,  George  H.  194,  195. 

Pennington,  William  178.^* ^^ 

Personal  Liberty  Laws,  154. 

Pet  Banks,  The  116,  125. 

Pierce,  Franklin  156,  157,  164. 

Pinckney,  C.  C.  41,  49,  58,  59, 
66,  68. 

Pinckney,  Thomas  39. 

Pocket  Veto,  108. 

Political  Parties,  Origin  of  3. 

Polk,  James  K.  120,  126,  131, 
138,  140. 

Popular  Sovereignty  4,  152, 
1 80. 

Presidential  Elections,  Disput- 
ed :  (of  1800)  49,  (of  1824) 
95,  (of  1876)  213. 

Protection  21,  88,  99,  104,  185. 

QUIDS,  THE  61,  66,  74. 

RADICAL  MEN  193. 

Randolph,  Edmund  10,  20. 

Randolph,  John  6l,  74,  89. 

Reconstruction  196-209. 

Republican  Party  of  1791  (see 
Democratic  -  Republican  Par- 
ty). 

Republican  Party  of  1856:  its 
origin  162,  first  great  success 
182,  manages  the  War  against 
the  Rebellion  187,  quarrels 
with  Johnson  200,  accom- 
plishes Reconstruction  by 
Congress  203-209. 

Returning  Boards  21 1. 

Rush,  Richard  101. 

SCOTT,   THE  CASE  OF  DRED 

170,  180,  185. 
Scott,  Winfield  156,  157. 
Secession  182,  1 88. 
Sedition  Law,  The  44,  99. 
Seminole  War,  The  85,  127. 
Sergeant,  John  in,  114. 
Seward,  William  H.  162  (iicte). 
Seymour,  Horatio  207. 


Slave  Power,  The  172-174. 
Slavery  86,  122,  155,  172,  191, 

195- 

Slave  Trade,  The  II,  174. 
Smith,  W7illiam  101. 
Specie  Circular,  The  1 2 1,  125, 

127. 

Squatter  Sovereignty  152,  180. 
Stan  ton,  Edwin  M.  204,  206. 
State  Bank  System,  The  119. 
Stephens,  Alexander  H.  185. 
Stevenson,   Andrew    100,    106, 

109,  117,  118. 
Story  on  the  Constitution,  Judge 

13- 

Strict    Constructionist,     I,    14, 

97,  162,  206,  212. 
Sub-Treasury  System,  The  Il8, 

119,  126,  129,  133. 
Sumner,  Charles  165. 
Sumter,  Fort  187. 


TANEY,  ROGER  B.  116,  118. 

Tariff,  The  20,  84,  87,  93,  (of 
1824)  94,  98,  (of  1828)  100, 
(of  1832)  no,  (of  1833)  114, 
(of  1842)  136,  (of  1846)  145, 
(of  1857)  168,  (of  1861)  185, 
189,  191. 

Taylor,  John  W.  89,  97. 

Taylor,   Zachary  142,  147,  150, 

154- 

Tazewell,  L.  W.  131. 
Texas  85,   122,    136,    137,    139, 

142. 

Thomas,  Lorenzo  205. 
Tilden,  S.  J.  212,  215. 
Tompkins,  Daniel  D.  82,  91. 
Topeka  Constitution  164. 
Tory  5. 

Trumbull,  Jonathan  25. 
Tyler,    John    113    (note*),    I2O, 

124,  129,  131,   132,    138,   194 

(note). 

UNION  PARTY,  THE  187. 


274 


Index. 


VAN    BUREN,    MARTIN,    109, 

IIO,    III,   114,    120,    123,    131, 
138,    148. 

Yarn  urn,  Joseph  B.  69. 
Virginia   Resolutions   (of  1798) 
46,  (of  1799)47. 


WAI  KKR.  ROIIKRT  J.  168. 
Walker,  William  174. 
Washington,  George  IO,  18,  27, 

29,  36,  38,  43. 
Webster,  Daniel  120,   123,   133 

(note}. 

Wheeler,  William  A.  212,  215. 
Whig  5. 
Whig    Party,    The:     origin   of 

1 20,  first   great  success  130, 


quarrels  with  Tyler  133,  de- 
cline 151,  156,  166. 

Whiskey  Insurrection,  The  34. 

White,  Hugh  L.  119,  121,  123. 

White,  John  133. 

Whitney's  Cotton  Gin  86. 

Wilmot  Proviso  144,  146,  15  ^, 

195- 

Wilson,  Henry  210. 
Wmthrop,  Robert  C.  146. 
Wirt,  William  III,  114. 
Wright,  Silas  138. 
Wyamlot  Constitution,  The 
177,  179,  185. 

X.Y.Z.  MISSION  42. 
YAZOO  FRAUDS,  THE  56. 


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